• Former England captain releases strongly-worded statement • ‘It is time for Fifa to change and we should all welcome it’

This article is more than 5 years old

This article is more than 5 years old

The former England captain David Beckham has blasted Fifa over the “despicable” corruption allegations which led to the resignation of Sepp Blatter as president of world soccer’s governing body.

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The former Manchester United and Real Madrid midfielder, who was a major figure in England’s failed bid to host the 2018 Would Cup, issued a strongly-worded statement on Wednesday calling for major change at Fifa.

“Some of the things that we now know happened were despicable, unacceptable and awful for the game that we love so much,” Beckham said. “Football is not owned by a few individuals at the top, it belongs to the millions of people around the world who love this sport.

“It is time for Fifa to change and we should all welcome it.”

Blatter unexpectedly announced on Tuesday that he was quitting as Fifa president, just four days after he was re-elected to a fifth term.