FIFA aspirants date COSAFA
The Council of Southern Africa Football Associations (Cosfa) will hold its annual general meeting (AGM) in Johannesburg this Saturday where Fifa presidency aspiring candidates will sell their manifestos.
The candidates will take advantage of the presence of 14 Cosafa member associations presidents to campaign.
The presidential candidates, Sheikh Salman bin Ebrahim al-Khalifa, Jerome Champagne and Tokyo Sexwale, requested to have an audience with Cosafa members.
“This request was accepted so that Cosafa nations may make an informed decision during voting for the next Fifa president in Zurich on February 26 2016,” Cosafa statement on the assembly reads in part.
Football Association of Malawi (FAM) president Walter Nyamilandu said the association would listen to the aspirants’ presentations before making a decision on who to vote for at the Fifa elections.
“FAM has no candidate in mind. It’s difficult to decide now because we are yet to receive their manifestos. We can only tell after the Cosafa assembly. As of now, we don’t know their plans,” Nyamilandu said.
“We don’t even know some of them. We just read about them. We need to hear their manifestos and ask them a few questions. Then we will be able to make a decision.”
Nyamilandu however, said FAM would support a candidate that would restore Fifa’s battered image.
“I think knowledge and experience of the game, leadership skills, with a proven track record and integrity will be the key parameters because Fifa’s image at the moment is tainted. Integrity will be very critical,” Nyamilandu said.
He also said FAM would support a candidate that has ambitious plans for Africa.
“We need a leader who is inclusive because we don’t want Africa to be left behind,” he said.
Apart from the Fifa candidates presentations, the assembly will also discuss preparations for the upcoming 2016 Castle Lager Cosafa Cup that will be staged in Windhoek, Namibia from May 15-29.
Women’s Championship, Under-20 and Under-17 junior tournaments, as well as the Cosfa Beach Soccer Championships will also be discussed.
Other Cosafa members are; Angola, Botswana, the Comoros Islands, Lesotho, Madagascar, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, the Seychelles, South Africa, Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
