By John Duerden in Kuala Lumpur
May 2 – It is hard to know which was the most extraordinary sight at the Asian Football Confederation’s Extraordinary Congress at the Mandarin Hotel in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday morning: Sheikh Salman Ebrahim Al-Khalifa winning the election to become the next president of the AFC in the first round of voting, his bitter rival Yousuf Al Serkal coming in last or Sepp Blatter lecturing delegates about the necessity of returning to core football values.
In the cavernous hall of the plush hotel, delegates walked to the front two at a time, accompanied by the sounds of gentle jazz playing in the background, to make their choice in transparent voting booths. What no-one could predict was that more than two-thirds of them, 33 out of 46, would plump for Salman, handing the Bahraini a crushing victory over Al Serkal, who managed a measly six votes, one less than Worawi Makudi of Thailand.
The decision of the East Asian Football Federation (EAFF) to support Salman on Wednesday afternoon gave the head of the Bahrain FA a vital push towards the finish line and from that point, he never looked back in his bid to take over from his discredited predecessor Mohamed bin Hammam.
By late evening, South Asia was also hardening in its support and on Thursday morning, the decision of Central Asia to jump on the bandwagon – encouraged, suggested sources, by the visiting Sepp Blatter eager to ensure that Bin Hammam allies Al Serkal and Makudi were defeated – was enough to mean that even a few extra votes from the ASEAN region and parts of West Asia were not even needed.
Such was the gathering momentum prior to the vote that there was speculation that even Iran, not exactly a friend of Bahrain, had changed its vote from Serkal to Salman. Ali Kafashian, the president of the Iranian Football Federation told Inside World Football that Salman winning was the best result for Asia. It almost didn’t matter whether the rumours were true. Their very existence showed that Salman was on his way.
“People want to look at a vision and they want to vote for someone they feel comfortable with,” said Salman when asked by Inside World Football why he won such a crushing victory. “We’ve been talking to people for months but the last 24 hours were crucial. When you reach that stage, people can get the sense of who’s leading and people want to be with the winner. I’m humble for the support I got today and I hope that I can return this support.”
Salman cut a confident figure in his victory press conference, brushing off questions about alleged human rights abuses in his native Bahrain.
“Do you have the proof?” he retorted. “Somebody talks about the government, I don’t think this our business in football, we are football people. If anybody has the proof that the Bahrain Football Association has violated the statutes of FIFA or AFC then present it, otherwise we move on.”
“After today’s result most of Asia is united and we have to work hard to convince the others. The 33 votes today has set an example that Asia wanted that change and be united again. I’m humbled and grateful for the support I got today and I hope I can return their confidence and support in the next two years.”
It wasn’t only Salman pressing the flesh on Wednesday and Thursday morning. Sheikh Ahmad Fahad Al-Sabah, president of the Olympic Council of Asia, clearly played his part and had a smile almost as wide as Salman’s victory margin after the result was announced. Ahmad’s visit to East Asia to meet prominent political and sporting figures in mid-April was crucial in securing the support of the region’s nine members.
Throughout the election Al Serkal had accused the OCA of interfering in the election prompting an unseemly spat between the football associations of Kuwait, UAE and FIFA.
“I know the drive behind Salman was strong and I knew that I was not contesting just Sheikh Salman but there was also the force of OCA,” said Al Serkal who added, however, that he wanted to draw a line under the election and move on.
“I don’t want to talk about that [OCA] any more. All that talk had to do with the election and now that has finished, I will not accuse, attack or criticise anyone. I have respect for all, even if it is OCA who supported Sheikh Salman and did not support me. It is a freedom of choice which I really respect.”
Serkal said it was too early to think about the next AFC presidential election in January 2015 but sources close to the AFC vice-president admitted that it was extremely unlikely that he could recover from such a massive defeat to challenge Salman in 20 months’ time.
Makudi was also reluctant to discuss the results in detail. “I don’t know what happened or why,” he told Inside World Football. “We tried our best and we respect the decision of the AFC members. It is now time to move forward.”
Hassan Al-Thawadi ,who lost out to Salman in his bid to win a seat on FIFA’s Executive Committee by 28 votes to 18, was more talkative despite his obvious disappointment. Seconds before the result was announced, a posting on twitter declared Al Thawadi’s victory, sparking celebrations in the Qatari camp that were soon silenced.
“I don’t know why I lost,” Al Thawadi told Inside World Football. “Sheikh Salman has been on the scene since 2009. It’s not a surprise that it was always going to be close race and it turned out to be a close race: 28 votes to 18 votes, you’re effectively talking about five votes. I walked in and I was confident that I had good chances of winning but I was not confident of winning and there is a difference. The results today proved that.”
Ironically, the suspension of Sri Lanka’s Vernon Manilal Fernando by FIFA earlier this week for alleged misuse of AFC funds gives Asia yet another vacant spot on the FIFA executive committee. Might Al Thawadi try again?
Sheikh Salman said the post would be open for anyone to contest but added, tellingly, that a candidate from East Asia may the best solution for regional balance on FIFA’s powerful body. “The options are always open,” Al Thawadi told Inside World Football. “I believe in my vision. I think I have a lot to offer Asian football and global football. I can do that through the 2022 World Cup but also I believe I can represent football in the global family and I am going to consider all my options. I say congratulations again to Sheikh Salman and we need to work together on a unified Asia.”
While Blatter informed the congress that the 2015 election is the really important one, it remains to be seen what this result means in the long term. The size of the victory puts Salman in a very strong position and with most delegates talking of unity in the hours after the ballot, any suggestion of a challenge in 2015 is not going to come just yet, if it comes at all.
In the end, there was a certain air of relief that the atmosphere of strife and suspicion accumulated over the past two years since Bin Hammam’s fall from grace was starting to lift. Now it’s Salman’s turn.
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