Pressure is growing for a fully-independent figure from outside of Europe to be appointed as the head of the new Fifa reform task force.

The man viewed as the favourite to be appointed, Swiss businessman Domenico Scala, has ruled himself out of the job.

It is understood it comes after Uefa president Michel Platini and the Asian Football Confederation pushed for a figurehead who is completely independent of Fifa. There is also a feeling that the chairman should come from outside Europe.

Fifa sponsors Visa and Coca-Cola have also both called for a wholly independent process to look at how the world governing body can bring in changes.

Scala is seen as being too close to Fifa as he is already deeply involved with the world governing body, as independent chairman of the audit and compliance committee. He has also developed a number of the reform proposals that were put to Fifa’s executive committee last week.

A spokesman for Scala said in an email: “Domenico Scala never applied for such a chairmanship. He would consider to chair such a task force anyway under the strict condition only, that independence was guaranteed.”

The decision on the task force chairman will be taken by the six confederation presidents and outgoing Fifa president Sepp Blatter, who is standing down in February.

Time is running short however — the task force has been asked to report its findings within seven weeks to the next Fifa executive committee meeting.

Campaign group New Fifa Now has labelled suggestion that Scala was wholly independent of Fifa as “laughable”.