INTERVIEW-Soccer-Blatter sets stall for unchallenged third term

By Mark Ledsom

ZURICH, March 23 (Reuters) - FIFA president Sepp Blatter is preparing a manifesto for his next four years in office despite facing no apparent opposition for soccer's top job.

Although not due for re-election until FIFA's annual congress in May, the 71-year-old Swiss has effectively just over a week to go until his next presidential term is confirmed.

Any candidate wishing to stand against Blatter must put his name forward before April 1 -- and so far nobody has.

"There is still a chance it could happen, but I don't feel it will," Blatter told Reuters in an interview at FIFA's headquarters on Friday.

"There is a French expression that says if you win without opposition then it is a triumph without glory, but for me it is also a kind of glory when you know the history of my presidency."

Blatter beat off former UEFA president Lennart Johansson when he first gained the presidency in 1998 and then came through a bitter fight in 2002 when he faced accusations of financial mismanagement following the collapse of FIFA's marketing partners ISL.

"They didn't want me in 1998, then they tried to kill me in 2002 and now they bring me the presidency on a platter, so that is also a kind of recognition and satisfaction."