The 79-year-old's call for reform comes as a chorus of pundits, world leaders and European soccer's most important official have made clear what action they believe is necessary to clean up FIFA: Blatter must go.

On the eve of a vote that could put the embattled leader of soccer's scandal-ridden governing body into power for a fifth term, British Prime Minister David Cameron, much as expected, announced he will be supporting Jordan's Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein, the candidate put forth by England's Football Association to challenge Blatter's 17-year reign over world soccer.

"I fully support the Football Association's position that significant and wide-ranging reforms are urgently needed at the very top of FIFA, including a change in its leadership," he said, according to a statement.

And while a British Prime Minister's call for ouster may sound like it carries a lot of weight, we're talking about FIFA, an autonomous body that has survived numerous corruption scandals and defiantly stood firm in the face of widespread criticism of its decisions to hand Russia and Qatar the 2018 and 2022 World Cups.

But the words of Michel Platini likely will resonate. As president of UEFA, European soccer's governing body, he holds sway over votes that could threaten Blatter's grip on power.