Michel Platini has vowed to go to court to fight an eight-year ban handed down to him by FIFA's independent Ethics Committee.
Both the head of European football and Sepp Blatter, the former FIFA president, are planning to appeal, with Platini labeling the ban a "masquerade".
"The decision is no surprise to me: the procedure initiated against me by FIFA's ethics committee is a pure masquerade," Platini said in a statement.
"It has been rigged to tarnish my name by bodies I know well and who for me are bereft of all credibility or legitimacy."
The Frenchman said his conscience was clear and that he would challenge the decision in the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
"I will fight this to the end," he said.
The French Football Federation (FFF) maintained its support for Platini, with FFF president Noel Le Graet saying that he had been saddened and shocked by the former France midfielder's suspension.
"He will continue to fight," Le Graet said in a statement.
"His life has been dedicated to football. He has done great things for UEFA and I hope that his good faith will be recognised.
"It seems unbelievable, but it doesn't surprise me. The spokesperson of the Ethics Commission (Andreas Bantel) had already announced that Michel would be suspended for several years."
Until he was suspended in October, Platini was the initial favourite to succeed Blatter as FIFA president in an election next February.
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