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West Asian federation delays decision on which of 3 candidates to support for AFC presidency

By: Roufan Nahhas, The Associated Press

Posted: 03/6/2013 6:00 PM | Comments: 0 | Last Modified: 03/6/2013 6:06 PM

AMMAN, Jordan - Any agreement on which candidate the West Asian Football Federation will support for the continent's top job will have to wait until next month.

Yousef Al Serkal of the United Arab Emirates, Sheik Salman bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa of Bahrain and Hafez Al Medlej of Saudi Arabia, all from the WAFF zone, have nominated for the vacant Asian Football Confederation presidency.

Long-time FIFA Executive Committee member Worawi Makudi of Thailand is the only other candidate ahead of the May 2 election, which will determine who leads the continental football body until 2015.

Having three West Asian candidates potentially splitting support gives Worawi, the only candidate from the eastern half of the confederation, a natural advantage.

FIFA vice-president Prince Ali bin Al Hussein called a meeting in Amman on Wednesday to give the West Asian candidates a chance to present their plans and programs to regional delegates. No decision was reached among the representatives of 10 football associations, but the concept of supporting a single candidate hasn't been ruled out.

"It was a unanimous decision to support all nominees and to create an opportunity for an open dialogue ... to agree on one candidate who will carry the AFC presidency for the development of this sport at all levels," Prince Ali said. Another meeting will be held next month in Amman.

Representatives from Kuwait, Qatar, Yemen, United Arab Emirates, Palestine, Lebanon, Oman, Iraq and Bahrain attended Wednesday's meeting.

Sheikh Talal Al Fahad Al Sabah of Kuwait was confident that at the next meeting everything will be clear.

"We have discussed several key issues including the nominees' programs and the requirements of each federation," he said.

After the meeting, Al Serkal said: "I am still a nominee and with any agreement in the next meeting."

China's Zhang Jilong, who has been acting president since Qatar's Mohamed bin Hammam was suspended by football's world governing body in May 2011, announced last weekend that he would not put himself forward to be president and has declined requests for further comment.

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