Dodd loses women’s spot as AFC fills FIFA Council slots and East Asia steps up

By Paul Nicholson in Manama, Bahrain

May 8 – The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) finally completed their election of members to the FIFA Council with Bangladesh’s Mahfuza Akhter Kiron overcoming Australia’s Moya Dodd 27-17 after the withdrawal of Palestinian and North Korean candidates turned the vote into a straight run-off. For the three other AFC positions on the FIFA Council there were only three candidates – China’s Zhang Jian Chung, South Korea’s Mong Gyu and Mariano V.

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Zul gets all-clear to stand in an African election that has been rigged from the start

By Paul Nicholson in Manama, Bahrain

May 7 – The odds – as well as CAF and FIFA – were stacked against him, with few even expecting him to make it to the start line for the African election of its last FIFA Council member. It has been a political process that makes the not-so-long-ago days of Issa Hayatou’s reign as president of the confederation start to look like a model for transparency and equality.

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