The UEFA president represents UEFA and chairs the UEFA Congress, as well as meetings of the UEFA Executive Committee. In the event of a tie in any vote, the president has the casting vote.

The UEFA president is responsible for:
1. Relations between UEFA and the world football body FIFA;
2. Relations between UEFA and other continental confederations;
3. Relations between UEFA and its member associations;
4. Relations between UEFA and political bodies and international
organisations;
5. Implementing the decisions of the Congress and the Executive
Committee through the UEFA administration;
6. Supervising the work of the UEFA administration.

In carrying out these responsibilities, the president consults with the Executive Committee. In the absence of the president, the highest-ranked available UEFA vice-president assumes his powers and duties.

Michel Platini was elected as UEFA president in January 2007. He was re-elected by acclamation for a second four-year term in March 2011.

Michel Platini was born on 21 June 1955 in Joeuf, Lorraine, in eastern France.

He enjoyed a distinguished career as a footballer, captaining the France team that won the 1984 UEFA European Football Championship on home soil, and holding the record for the number of goals in a EURO final round, scoring nine times.

He also took part in three FIFA World Cups, in 1978, 1982 and 1986, reaching the semi-final of the latter two competitions. In 72 international appearances for France – 49 as captain – he scored 41 goals, an achievement that stood as a record for a number of years.

Michel Platini played for three clubs – AS Nancy-Lorraine (1973-79) and AS Saint-Etienne (1979-82) in France, and Juventus (1982-87) in Italy. In a career spanning 501 matches, he scored 265 goals, and won the Ballon d'Or for European Footballer of the Year three successive times, in 1983, 1984 and 1985.

He was then coach of the French national team from 1988 to 1992 before embarking on a career as a football administrator. From 1992 to 1998, he was co-president of the FIFA World Cup Organising Committee for the 1998 World Cup in France, and vice-president of the French Football Federation (FFF) from 2000.

Within world football's governing body FIFA, from 2002 Michel Platini was a member of the FIFA Executive Committee, chairman of the Technical Development Committee, vice-chairman of the Football Committee and vice-chairman of the GOAL project. He was a member of the FIFA World Cup Organising Committee for the 2006 final round in Germany.

From 1988 to 1990, Michel Platini was a member of the UEFA Technical Development Committee. From 2002, he was a member of the UEFA Executive Committee, and represented the Executive Committee on the UEFA Technical Development Committee. He also served on the UEFA working group on clubs and leagues.

Michel Platini was elected as the sixth president of UEFA at the XXXI Ordinary UEFA Congress in Dusseldorf on 26 January 2007, and was re-elected by acclamation for a second four-year term at the XXXV Ordinary UEFA Congress in Paris on 22 March 2011. He is also a vice-president of FIFA.

Player honours
AS Nancy-Lorraine
French Cup winner: 1978
Division 2 champion: 1975

AS Saint-Étienne
French champion: 1981

Juventus
European Champion Clubs' Cup winner: 1985
UEFA Cup Winners' Cup winner: 1984
European/South American Cup winner: 1985
UEFA Super Cup winner: 1984
Italian champion: 1984, 1986
Italian Cup winner: 1983
FIFA Club Mundialito: 1983
Serie A top scorer: 1983, 1984, 1985
European Champion Clubs' Cup top scorer: 1985 (7 goals)

France
Capped 72 times, Michel Platini was France captain for 49 games from 1979 to 1987
UEFA European Championship winner: 1984
UEFA European Championship top scorer: 1984 (9 goals)
Artemio Franchi Trophy winner: 1985

Personal honours
Ballon d'Or: 1983, 1984, 1985
Onze d'Or: 1983, 1984, 1985
Guerin d'Oro: 1984
Best player in the UEFA European Championship: 1984
Best player in the European/South American Cup: 1985
Best player, FIFA Club Mundialito: 1983
World Soccer World Player of the Year: 1984, 1985
Chevron Award for goals-to-games ratio: 1983, 1985
Best player, English Football League Centenary Silver Trophy: 1987
World Soccer World Coach of the Year: 1991
El País World Coach of the Year: 1991