FIFA tells Indian FA to hold elections by Sept 15
World governing body FIFA has told India's football association to complete changes to its constitution and elect new office bearers by Sept 15 to avoid being banned, officials said.
India's highest court disbanded the All India Football Federation (AIFF) executive committee last month after it failed to hold elections on time and amend its regulations in line with rules stipulated by the national sports code.
The court then appointed a three-member committee to run the body, amend the AIFF's constitution and conduct elections that have been pending for 18 months.
FIFA statutes say that member federations must be free from legal and political interference in their respective countries and the world governing body has previously suspended other national associations over similar cases.
FIFA and the Asian Football Confederation sent a team led by AFC General Secretary Windsor John to meet Indian football stakeholders, including sports minister Anurag Thakur, on a three-day visit that concluded on Thursday.
"The meetings concluded that the next steps should be the ratification of the AIFF statutes in line with FIFA/AFC principles of good governance and the holding of an electoral congress to choose the next AIFF leadership," the AFC said in a statement.
"This would be based on a timeline agreed by AIFF stakeholders."
Shaji Prabhakaran, chief of the Delhi FA and former FIFA regional development officer, said on Twitter the AIFF had been given a deadline of July 31 to amend its statutes and Sept 15 to conclude its election.
"FIFA-AFC delegation has given us a strict timeline. It is on us to avoid FIFA ban," he added.
A ban could see India losing their hosting rights for the Under-17 Women's World Cup in October. The elections of the AIFF, led by FIFA Council member Praful Patel, were to be held by December 2020 but were delayed due to an impasse over amendments to its constitution.
Cricket-mad India is a massive underachiever in football and the country, which is home to 1.3 billion people, has yet to make an appearance at the World Cup finals.
(责任编辑:关于我们)
- Abrar Ahmed returns as Pakistan names squad for second Test against Bangladesh
- Apple now gives customers a full year to buy AppleCare+
- 省扫黑除恶专项斗争第9督导组召开重点案件汇报会和政法干警扫黑除恶专项斗争工作座谈会
- Qatar says workers rights to become 'key legacy'
- iPhone 16 Pro new color will reportedly be Desert Titanium
- 在中秋的团圆里 激发爱国主义情怀
- 展示良好形象 为创城添砖加瓦
- Mayor of D.C. has city workers painting 'Black Lives Matter' on street to White House
- The Future of Tech: The Desktop PC
- Qatar says workers rights to become 'key legacy'
- OKCupid adds Black Lives Matter badge and profile questions about racial inequality
- Mentions of Cuba in N. Korean media abruptly halt after establishment of Seoul
- Ruling bloc seeks tougher sentences for deepfake sex crimes
- Twitter is testing a new 'Quotes' counter
- Apple iPod: The First 10 Years of the Ubiquitous Media Player
- Here's how to *hypothetically* take down a racist statue with tips from an archaeologist
- 农业农村部郑重声明:没有成立过这三个委员会!
- 农业农村部郑重声明:没有成立过这三个委员会!
- If aliens harnessed solar power, could we detect them? NASA investigated.
- 3 sailors rescued after fishing boat sinks in eastern waters