Bad moon rising

By NANTHA KUMAR

A Middle-East conflict that is brewing in the Asian Football Confederation has the effect of changing the face of the game. Sheikh Salman Bin Ebrahim Al-Khalifa, who is leading the quest for change in the body, speaks out. 

ANY political agenda that exhorts us to “change” risks being barracked as unimaginatively stale, though a campaign based on this fashionable platform is almost certainly required for the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). 

The 23rd AFC Congress commenced yesterday in Kuala Lumpur and will climax with the election of one of Asia’s four places in the dominant FIFA Executive Committee this evening before closing tomorrow. 

A new beginning could be expected if Sheikh Salman Bin Ebrahim Al-Khalifa edges the AFC President Mohamed Bin Hammam as the governing body’s representative in FIFA. Sheikh Salman, the 43-year-old President of the Bahrain Football Association, is aware of the ruptures that have formed amongst the AFC’s 46 member associations under their six-year reign of the current head. 

Sheikh Salman Bin Ebrahim Al_khalifa, who is contesting as one of the four Asian Football Confederation's (AFC) representatives for West Asia on FIFA Executive Committee today, is bent on positive changes.

Hammam has been accused of establishing an autocratic rule and his folly of practising a system of patronage that favours a select group of members, has disillusioned those who have been kept out. This is a high-stakes contest that will end the careers of many, and concerns over its evenhandedness, Sheikh Salman has claimed, has prompted 24 national associations to alert FIFA President Sepp Blatter.  

Hammam, who turns 60 today, has vowed to vacate his chair at the upscale AFC House if he fails to brush off the challenge of Sheikh Salman. This oath was made, quite fatally, before the battle was seen as a referendum on his presidency and it has since taken a do-or-die twist that has placed the Qatari in a precarious position. 

“Asia is divided (because of the funds not coming to the national associations and the AFC’s direction). At the end of the day, the Asian countries know what (type of funding they) should have and, the way the AFC is managed, people are not happy with how things are going. (We must) have stability and have responsibility for all to be in the decision-making (process),” Sheikh Salman urged. 

“(We are) calling the whole of Asia to (take) a decision on its future … (it is important that) people who are elected and adhering to their responsibilities (must) have a share in the decision-making for what is best for Asia. Things in Asia now are not as good as before … we know that there is a division. 

“It is our responsibility to bring all the national associations back together and do what is right. I think we cannot leave (the current situation) to continue and, if I get elected, I’m sure that the changes that I talk about – managing things in a different way – (will be implemented). 

“The President has his own agendas, his own way of doing things, (dealing with) people and, as I’ve already mentioned, the controversial issues that (cropped up) in the past six years. One man’s decision cannot change the whole of Asia’s future … it is about the team. I just want to stand for what is fair and just and try to give equality to all national associations in Asia. This is my promise to them,” Sheikh Salman declared. 

Hammam swept into office on the back of a slew of pledges that were designed to raise the standards of football in the continent. 

The Vision Asia programmes were initiated in 2002 in four zones encompassing nine nations to educate members on every aspect of running professional football and association. The Asian Champions Cup, Asian Cup Winners Cup and Asian Super Cup were bundled together as the AFC Champions League in the same year and have been undergoing re-branding and format changes.  

The Goal Project was also another highly touted scheme to gradually lift the majority of Asian football out of its perpetual slump. The pilot project was launched in Malaysia – at the National Sports Complex in Bukit Jalil – and there were huge expectations for this plan to succeed. There was also one other matter that was not widely known about the Goal Project. 

“The Goal Project is not an AFC or Hammam programme (and) unfortunately all the national associations (are not aware that it is a FIFA initiative). It’s a misuse of the position that (has enabled him) to earn some support from the national associations. I don’t think this is right. This is the support that the national associations should get from FIFA and it’s their right to have it. It’s not bin Hammam’s or AFC’s or mine,” Sheikh Salman said. 

Regarding Vision Asia, we have heard about it so much but what are the benefits, exactly? 

“The national associations need support whether through financial or technical programmes and hopefully, we can have certain programmes – like FIFA have for all their members. We want to have something similar … not up to that scale but at least to have something which is clear and just for all.” 

While Sheikh Salman agreed that the AFC Champions League has succeeded in promoting the AFC name around the world, he pointed out that the competition suffered as it was only confined to 10 out of the 46 national associations under the AFC. He argued that the AFC should not just focus on the top nations and leave out the smaller countries if it intended to lift the quality of football. 

He proposed the building of a youth academy in each member country to develop football from the grassroots and that the AFC adopt specific programmes that have been implemented by FIFA for their members. These programmes, Sheikh Salman said, must complement each other and tailored for AFC members from Asean to Central Asia. 

Sheikh Salman stressed that the AFC’s role must not be confined to providing financial backing for their members and not setting goals for them to justify their aid. It is the AFC’s responsibility to draw out plans for four or eight years for the member to produce players good enough to take their nations to the World Cup Finals, make their names in the main leagues in Europe in the style of Park Ji-Sung or at least play superior football. 

“The level of football has become closer than before, but other nations (have lagged behind). Each country knows its weaknesses and what needs to be done (to overcome their problems) and it is our responsibility as a confederation to look after and support them in any way that we can. 

The marketing funds in football in Asia are huge and they can cover the cost of a lot of programmes under national associations,” Sheikh Salman said. 

“I’m giving the national associations an opportunity to look into things in a different way and, believe me or not, they did not need a lot of convincing. The national associations see logic and common sense in the issues that we talked about and I’m optimistic that I would get their support. We will soon find out,” he ominously concluded.