- Lennart Johansson
Lennart Johansson (born
5 November ,1929 ) was the president ofUEFA , the Union of European Football Associations from 1990 until 2007. Johansson is probably most famous for starting theUEFA Champions League and for bringing the UEFA European Football Championship to his nativeSweden .Born in
Sweden , Johansson lives inStockholm and was the president of local football clubAIK 's football section until he stepped down in 2005. In April 2005 he was re-elected for a new two-year period as President of UEFA, and announced that he would seek another four-year term. [cite news
title = Johansson wants Uefa re-election
publisher = BBC Online
date =July 11 ,2006
url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/europe/5170408.stm
accessdate = 2006-07-11] However, he lost the UEFA leadership election of 26 January, 2007 toMichel Platini .While UEFA President, Johansson made controversial comments to
BBC Radio Five Live commentatorJacqui Oatley at the2005 UEFA Women's Championship , when he suggested that in sponsoring women's football: "Companies could make use of a sweaty, lovely looking girl playing on the ground, with the rainy weather. It would sell." [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/women/4102440.stm BBC SPORT | Football | Women | Backlash over Johansson's remarks ] ] . But Johansson deniedsexism , and countered in and interview withThe Times newspaper: "All I was saying is that women are more marketable than men. I would never want to upset or criticise the women's game." He had in January 2005 been quick to criticiseFIFA president Sepp Blatter, after he called for women to wear tighter shorts [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/women/4106220.stm BBC SPORT | Football | Women | Johansson denies 'sexist' claims ] ]Johansson is also the vice-president of
FIFA , and in 1998 he was a candidate to succeedBrazil ianJoão Havelange as the organisation's president, but was defeated by Sepp Blatter.References
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