Joao Havelange has resigned as honorary president of FIFA following the revelation that he had received bribes.

A report by the FIFA ethics committee has named Havelange and two former executive committee members Ricardo Teixeira and Nicolas Leoz as receiving bribes. All three have now resigned. The ethics committee were investigating a scandal surrounding a former marketing partner of FIFA, ISL.

The report also calls current FIFA President Sepp Blatter’s handling of the situation “clumsy” and, while exonerating him of any misconduct the report does question if Blatter “knew or should have known over the years before the bankruptcy of ISL that ISL had made payments (bribes) to other FIFA officials.”

The report goes on, on the subject of Blatter’s actions, to state:

"The report states that in 1997, Blatter authorised the transfer of 1.5million Swiss francs (£1million) to Havelange after ISL mistakenly sent it to FIFA.

"But Blatter, who was then general secretary of the organisation when Havelange was president, told the ethics investigation "at that time he did not suspect the payment was a commission".

"President Blatter's conduct could not be classified in any way as misconduct with regard to any ethics rules," says the report.

"The conduct of President Blatter may have been clumsy because there could be an internal need for clarification, but this does not lead to any criminal or ethical misconduct."

Havelange was FIFA president between 1974 and 1998, following which he became honorary president.