World football players' union FIFPro has 'welcomed' the news that FIFA president Sepp Blatter is to stand down from his role.

Blatter announced his intention to resign this afternoon, just four days after being elected for a fifth term in office.

The surprise decision comes amid allegations of corruption in the upper echelons of FIFA, and FIFPro have joined those calling for an overhaul of how world football's governing body is run.

"FIFPro welcomes the decision of FIFA President Sepp Blatter to resign as this creates an overdue and unique opportunity to fundamentally reform the governance of football," read a statement.

"The world's professional footballers, through FIFPro, have a pivotal role to play in the structural overhaul of football. We are deeply committed to achieving this critical outcome in conjunction with all of the game's key stakeholders.

"FIFPro insists that only flawless governance will be acceptable to protect the wellbeing of the players and the integrity of the game. The reform effort will fail without the direct involvement of the players."

Emergency FIFA presidential elections are due to take place between September 2015 and March 2016, with Prince Ali and David Ginola already having confirmed their intentions to stand.