President of World Chess Federation Considering Running for FIFA Presidency

Unless Sepp Blatter has one of his customary changes of heart, FIFA is planning to elect a new leader on February 26, 2016. The new king of football's governing body, however, may be knighted from an unlikely source.

According to quotes gathered by the Associated Press, Russian politician and World Chess Federation president Kirsan Ilyumzhinov is thinking about standing in the election:

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Kirsan Ilyumzhinov said he was considering a bid to replace Sepp Blatter after Russian Chess Federation president Andrei Filatov encouraged him to go for the job.

"The suggestion has been made but I haven't made a decision yet on whether I'll stand," the 53-year-old Ilyumzhinov said in comments reported by Russia's R-Sport news agency. "For myself, I haven't decided anything about this issue yet."

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Ilyumzhinov, who once bankrolled defunct Russian side Uralan Elista, would need to be nominated by five member federations and prove he had a role in the game for two of the last five years.

Alexei Druzhinin/Associated Press

One may think that the chess master would be a refreshing change of pace from the peculiar and allegedly corrupt FIFA executives we know, but sadly not:

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He also has a reputation for eccentricity and claimed to have visited an alien spaceship during his time as leader of the Russian region of Kalmykia from 1993-2010, during which time opponents accused him of corruption and human rights abuses.  

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The alien-visiting Russian also appears to be a rather unpopular figure in the world of chess:

If FIFA is true to form, we may be hearing a lot more about Mr. Ilyumzhinov in the coming months.