Michel Platini, the 1984 European Champion, former French national team midfielder, and ex-President of UEFA, has proposed reducing the number of players on the field from eleven to ten.
Platini was quoted by RMC as saying:
Maybe we should take one player out of each team and play with ten players. We have been playing in teams of 11 since 1900, but back then, players ran smaller and slower than today. They were physically weaker back then. So it would be wise to limit the number of players. This will free up space on the pitch.
It is important to note that the 69-year-old Platini led UEFA from 2007 to 2015 but had to resign due to a corruption scandal.
On July 8, 2022, the Federal Criminal Court of Switzerland acquitted Platini along with former FIFA President Sepp Blatter after a long investigation into corruption, which initially led to both being banned from any sporting activity for an eight-year period (the bans were later significantly reduced). The country's prosecution has filed an appeal against the acquittal of the officials.
In an interview with the Italian newspaper La Stampa on May 8, 2023, Platini accused current FIFA and UEFA leaders Gianni Infantino and Aleksander Čeferin of being too focused on money and politics.