Al-Rumaithi: Infantinho must be neutral in "Asian elections"

Mohammed Khalfan Al Rumaithi, president of the General Authority of Sports of the United Arab Emirates, has welcomed the idea of ​​helping to organize the FIFA World Cup 2022 if the deep political conflict with Qatar was resolved.

Gianni Infanteño, President of the International Federation of FIFA, supports a proposal to increase the number of teams from 32 to 48 and states that neighboring countries could host matches.

"I think the best way is to solve the problem," said Rumaithi, who left the Abu Dhabi Executive Board to focus on the candidacy of the AFC president. Restore the bonds and fraternal spirit that prevailed before. Then we can provide support. "

"If the problem is solved, I think the UAE will host the World Cup matches at home," said the UAE General Authority of Sports Authority. Group competitions or two groups, for example (in the first round). If the relations are normal and all the problems are solved, we will be very happy to help the Qataris. "

The emirati Mohammed Khalfan Al-Rumaithi, former commander of the Abu Dhabi police, will be appointed to the presidency of the CFA, in the hope that the FIFA president, Gianni Infanteño, will be neutral .

Al-Rumaithi is no longer the commander-in-chief of the Abu Dhabi Police. A presidential decree was issued Monday designating Major General Fares Khalaf al-Mazroui instead: "Yes, it has to do with elections," he said. The police chief must be in his office all the time. I walked away from my office because of the Club World Cup and the Asian Cup, and then ran. "

According to the rules of the continental federation of the game, candidates for the presidency in the elections of April 6 will stand to promote themselves at the Asian Cup. But Rumaithi revealed his main goal.

"In simple and concise terms … to improve the level of football in Asia.This problem has several tools, but I know the starting point.I can not reveal the details, because I do not want to break the rules, but everything AFC president must improve football on the continent, and it depends not only rich countries, but also the entire continent. "

Rumaithi, 54, said he wanted to attract more sponsorship rights from major Asian companies. "We want to bring some of these funds to Asia There are giant companies in China, Japan, South Korea, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia that can sponsor the AFC Championships. I have always been good at financial matters and my story is a testament to that, because money is an important factor in football. "

Al-Rumaithi prefers not to approach his candidacy because of the criteria imposed by the continental union, but explains his reasons: "I have a long 20-year experience. I have run the clubs and federation of UAE and I am today president of the General Authority of Youth and Sports. I consider myself effective and I can add to the AFC ".

Al-Rumaithi will participate in the elections scheduled for next April in Kuala Lumpur with Bahraini President Sheikh Salman bin Ibrahim al-Khalifa and Qatari Saud al Mohannadi.

Al-Rumaithi greets the current president of the Italian-Swiss club Infanteño, who sees part of his influence on the elections of continental unions, especially in Europe and Africa. He said: "My relationship with him started last year and we went together this year to visit His Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, He then brought his family to visit him in open court. relationship was starting to develop and, honestly, we did not talk about elections or asked questions, but we have some kind of chemistry. "" I hope you'll be happy with me, "he jokes. .

"If he really wants to clean (FIFA), he can not support anyone (at the election of the AFC)," said Roumithi, who supports Infantinho's candidacy for a new mandate for "the improvement of FIFA's reputation" as a result of a series of corruption scandals that have touched the highest football authorities. . It's something (supporting one candidate rather than another) that counts against him. He must remain neutral and not interfere in a continental election. Until now, there is no indication of his intervention. "

And the current electoral weight of Cheikh Ahmad Al-Fahd, president of the Olympic Council of Asia, resigned last year from the presidency of the Union of National Olympic Committees (ANOK), as part of of an investigation into a charge brought by the Swiss public prosecutor's office for suspicion of rigging, related to a political problem in Kuwait, "In Asia, its position is still the same and weighs heavily, in addition to its impact on voters . "

Al-Fahad also gave up his roles in Asian and international football after being identified in April by a US Justice Department document in a corruption case involving former Guam Football Association president Richard Lay .

Al-Rumaithi explained that he would present his program on March 6: "We will then begin the visits of the countries, respectively 45 countries in 20 days".

Salman bin Ibrahim announced in October that he had the support of the majority of National Federations in his quest for a new mandate. The Sheikh Bahraini has been in office since 2013 after a landslide victory over the United Arab Emirates, Youssef Al-Sarkal, Al-Rumaithi commented: "We have studied the negative and outdated aspects of our campaign. We learned from those who were at that time mistakes they made.

The diplomatic crisis between Qatar and its Gulf neighbors plays an important role in the Asian Cup in the UAE, opening the door to politics.

"Sport is an industry, politics is involved, but we have tried to help as much as possible regarding the crisis in the Gulf and the Qatari people," he said.

Qatar has disputed the group stage in the absence of the mbades, and national media reported that Al-Mohannadi, vice president of the AFC, had banned entry to the UAE on the eve of the tournament, before appearing later in the stadiums.

"Our response to CAF confirms that we welcome all Qataris in accordance with the commitments and conditions We do not have diplomatic relations, which means that we need to obtain a visa from the relevant authorities and verify the identity of the participants, but unfortunately, they did not attend, we welcome the Qataris as a team, as well as the fans and the channel of the Qatari event ".

"We were expecting a bigger presence because most of the teams are big," Rumaithi said. But was surprised by the lack of communities as an Emirati public. For our fans, the team must be at its best and if they doubt their abilities, they will not attend the club or the team. I hope this culture will change, loyalty must always be, win or lose. "

Al-Rumaithi pointed out that the UAE agenda for the organization of major international tournaments, whose purpose is economic – tourism – promotional, do not refine the image of the country: "The People come because we hold exhibitions, conferences and sporting events, the most important of which is the Louvre Museum in Abu Dhabi. "Our aim is to encourage tourism and the economy and not 39 "improve the situation." "We are proud of what our country has achieved in all global indicators. The UAE is superior to many countries and even to international countries in many ways. "