Posted on May 10, 2011
Mohamed Bin Hammam and Jack Warner during Tuesday's press conference.
PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad — Asian Confederation president Mohamed Bin Hammam said Tuesday that he felt the timing was right for him to become FIFA president.
The Qatar-born official spoke to the media after delivering a near two-hour presentation to officials of CONCACAF at the Hyatt Regency Hotel after he was unable to travel to Miami last week for the CONCACAF Congress due to visa issues.
Bin Hammam is vying for the position against FIFA President Sepp Blatter at the elections in Zurich, Switzerland on June 1. CONCACAF president Jack Warner kept tightlipped on who his confederation will support, saying that after hearing Bin Hammam earlier that morning, he would listen to the collective views of his members before making a final decision.
Asked why he is vying for the presidency, Bin Hammam replied, “The age is No. 1. I am 62-years old,” Bin Hammam said. “I cannot do it now then I will not do it again. I have the sufficient experience and I think I need to give back. FIFA is about the world game. It’s time for change.
“They say where there is a will, there is a way. I want to pass on from my own experience… what I can do for FIFA and for world football.”
Bin Hammam mentioned that he did not believe FIFA was a corrupt organization. In light of reports that surfaced earlier in the day regarding allegations that four FIFA officials requested bribes from the England 2018 World Cup bid, Bin Hammam maintained that if there were allegations were to be true then sufficient evidence would have to be provided.
He added that he hoped FIFA would be more transparent and its decision-making process should involve more parties.
“Any decision, regardless of its importance, might be adopted by majority of [FIFA's] Executive Bureau which has 24 members.”
He asked that FIFA should allow regional soccer associations to contribute to the development of the game.
Hammam and Blatter are the only two candidates for the election.
Bin Hammam will have the support of the East Asian Football Federation in his bid.
“The EAFF Executive Committee . . . has unanimously welcomed the decision of Mr. Mohamed Bin Hammam, president of AFC, to stand for the presidency of FIFA,” the federation said in a statement.
The EAFF is composed of 10 members.
Categories: Caribbean, Central America, CONCACAF, North America
Tags: CONCACAF, FIFA, FIFA Executive Committee, Jack Warner, Mohamed Bin Hammam, Sepp Blatter
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