FIFA suspends Pakistan in row over local federation | READ DETAILS
chuks oti
Apr 08, 2021
FIFA suspended Pakistan's membership Wednesday and ordered an unrecognised committee to vacate the national football federation's headquarters in the country.
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Pakistan football has been run by a FIFA-appointed committee since 2019, but members were evicted from their Lahore office last week by a group claiming to have held legitimate elections.
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"The Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) has been suspended until further notice,ÔÇØ FIFA said in a statement from its headquarters in Zurich.
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"PFF representative and club teams are therefore no longer entitled to take part in international competitions until the suspension is lifted.ÔÇØ
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The ban means Pakistan - whose last international match was against Cambodia in June 2019 - will no longer get FIFA development funding, worth around $1.25 million a year.
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Pakistan, a giant at the regional level in the 1960s and 70s, has been suspended twice before because of government interference in the sport.
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The country is currently ranked 200th out of FIFA's 210 teams.
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Pakistan's supreme court ordered the national football body to hold elections in 2019, which were claimed by a group led by a businessman, Ashfaq Hussain.
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But the Asian Football Confederation refused to accept the result, and FIFA appointed a normalisation committee to run the federation's affairs until recognised elections could be held.
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Ashfaq's group claimed to have done that last week, and took possession of the headquarters.
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"It's shameful,ÔÇØ former international Aurangzeb Shahmir told AFP, calling the latest suspension a "black dayÔÇØ for Pakistan football.
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— chuks oti