By Andrew Warshaw
March 6 – Moya Dodd, one of the first women to serve on FIFA’s ‘old’ executive committee as a co-opted member and a forceful campaigner for gender equality, is two months away from finding out whether she will still have a major role to play at FIFA’s top table.
But if the Australian lawyer loses out in the ballot for Asian Football Confederation (AFC) representatives to the new-look FIFA Council, it won’t be for want of trying.
Like all the other AFC candidates, Dodd’s lobbying was somewhat thrown off course when the original September date for voting was scrapped in extraordinary circumstances in protest at FIFA’s late decision to bar Saoud Al Mohannadi, vice-president of the Qatar Football Association, from standing.
Whether or not she would have won a seat is open to question but the fact that she is now taking on three female rivals rather than two (at least one seat has to go to a woman) does not in the least phase her.
Mahfuza Ahkter of Bangladesh, Han Un Gyong of North Korea and the new kid on the block, Palestine’s Susan Shelabi, are all out to sneak home ahead of Dodd but she is banking on her experience (she is also current chair of FIFA’s Women’s Football Taskforce) to get her over the line in Bahrain on May 8, just before the FIFA Congress.
Insideworldfootball can reveal that the ASEAN group of 12 AFC members agreed to support Dodd at their recent meeting in Myanmar, a crucial boost in her attempt to retain a strong voice in global football governance. Dodd flew there from Doha where she lobbied fiercely among 15 other AFC members.
“I’ve met with representatives of about half the members in Asia, and will speak to more in the weeks to come,” Dodd told Insideworldfootball. “I am very grateful for the backing of the twelve ASEAN members who have already declared their support. I’ll try to repay their faith in me.
“It’s a good opportunity to engage with the members, and listen to what is important to them in FIFA. It’s a time of great change. Major decisions are looming – like the World Cup slot allocations. People are very conscious that as the biggest confederation AFC can grow the world game enormously with the incentive of additional slots.
“The growth of club football is also very important. Asia already brings a lot of value to club football via direct investments and via our broadcast markets which are highly monetized by the big European leagues. This value should be recognised in a way that helps us grow the game here in Asia.”
Dodd shrugs off rumours that part of the AFC electorate is keen to ditch her native Australia and send it back to Oceania.
“This election is about finding the best woman to represent Asia in FIFA. It’s not about choosing a country; it’s about choosing the strongest team.”
“I’m confident that I have a very strong position based on my experience and track record. I spent three years on the FIFA ExCo /Council during the crisis and then the reforms. That’s an investment in building relationships and learning how to be effective, and I can bring that to bear for AFC.
“Most of all, I don’t treat the role as an entitlement, but an opportunity to work even harder for those who put you there.”
Dodd, who relentlessly bangs the drum for the women’s game and today went on social media to take part in the FIFA Conference for Equality and Inclusion in Zurich, says the fact that she is one of four women in the upcoming AFC election can only serve as a positive.
“I think four women candidates is a record in any Confederation. It shows that it’s becoming more and more possible for women to put themselves forward for major roles. I don’t see it as a bad thing.”
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