Sports tribunal rejects FIFA voting protest

The Court of Arbitration for Sport rejected Thursday, for the second time in two days, a demand for transparent voting booths to be used in the FIFA presidential election.

FIFA contender Jerome Champagne had made the bid in parallel to a move by Prince Ali bin al Hussein, who was rejected on Wednesday.

The CAS said in a statement it had "rejected an urgent request for provisional measures" made by Champagne, a former FIFA official who is one of five candidates seeking to take Sepp Blatter's place as president in a vote Friday.

Champagne and Prince Ali had wanted transparent voting booths and independent scrutineers used on Friday "to ensure that the vote is conducted in secret."

The vote is meant to be secret. But Champagne and Prince Ali had raised suspicions that some delegates would take a picture of their vote to prove to their regional confederation that they had backed an agreed candidate.