The emergency talks came as Swiss police confirmed they will be questioning ten FIFA executives over the decision to award World Cups to Russia and Qatar, and sponsors expressed their serious concerns over the corruption scandal.

Mr Blatter has remained out of the public eye for two days - missing three scheduled appearances. The 79 year old is expected to appear at the opening ceremony for the FIFA Congress later this afternoon.

Tomorrow, the embattled leader will be standing for re-election as FIFA president, but he faces competition from Prince Ali bin al-Hussein of Jordan - the candidate who is being backed by UEFA.

The chairman of the English FA, Greg Dyke, has warned it would be impossible to rebuild trust in FIFA if Mr Blatter remained at the helm. "(Blatter) either has to go through a resignation, or he has to be outvoted, or we have to find a third way," Mr Dyke said.

UEFA, which represents European football associations, has called for tomorrow's FIFA presidential election to be postponed by six months - amid speculation that it will boycott the Congress. However, the Confederation of African Football has expressed its opposition to the vote being delayed.

A source close to Prince Ali also wants the election to go ahead as scheduled, as he believes there is a "strong possibility" he can win.

Swiss authorities have claimed there are currently no plans to question Mr Blatter, as their investigation into money laundering and corruption allegations against the football governing body continues.

Former footballers have also reacted to the ongoing crisis in FIFA. Diego Maradona said he was "enjoying" the spectacle of top FIFA officials being arrested.

He added: "We have a FIFA with millions of dollars and there are players in Uruguay, in Costa Rica, where I'm told they don't earn more than $150 a month."