UEFA president meets Turkish prime minister
Thursday, February 24, 2011
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The UEFA president, Michel Platini, has held discussions with the prime minister of Turkey, Recep Erdoğan, during a visit to the Turkish capital city of Ankara on Thursday.
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The UEFA president, Michel Platini, has held talks in Ankara with the prime minister of Turkey, Recep Erdoğan.
Mr Platini, who stopped over in Ankara on his way back from the Confederation of African Football (CAF) congress in Khartoum, Sudan, met Mr Erdoğan for fruitful discussions which focused in particular on the development of football in Turkey and the Turkish government's support for what is the most popular sport in the country. Mr Erdoğan himself is a keen football fan.
Turkish clubs have consistently performed with distinction in European competitions over the years, and the Turkish national team achieved a proud third place at UEFA EURO 2008 in Austria and Switzerland.
The UEFA president was accompanied at the meeting with Mr Erdoğan by the UEFA first vice-president, Şenes Erzik, himself a highly respected football administrator from Turkey; the UEFA general secretary, Gianni Infantino; and the president of the Turkish Football Association (TFF), Mahmut Özgener.
