MOSCOW (Sputnik) – The former French diplomat runs against Sheikh Salman Khalifa, the head of the Asian Football Confederation, who has pledged to revisit the bidding for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups if he wins the election.
"It is nonsense," Champagne told R-Sport in response to whether a revision was necessary with only two years to go until the Russia-hosted tournament.
He said it was an "absolutely logical and fair" decision to award the next World Cup to Russia, considering that other candidates – Britain, Belgium, Spain and the Netherlands – had hosted it before.
"Secondly, everyone agrees that Soviet football and then Russian football brought a lot to football," Champagne said, citing Soviet star goalkeeper Lev Yashin and the legacy of FC Dynamo.
Champagne entered the FIFA presidential election race last October in a bid to succeed Sepp Blatter after he was suspended for eight years over allegations of bribery.
