KUALA LUMPUR:
Sheikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa was re-elected unopposed to the position
as president of the Asian Football Confederation yesterday after the regional
body's congress confirmed a new four-year term for the Bahraini by acclamation.
The 53-year-old, who was not present at the meeting due to the death of his
mother earlier in the week, was handed a third term at the helm after his
rivals, Mohammed Al Romaithi from the United Arab Emirates and Qatari Saoud Al
Mohannadi, withdrew.

Sheikh Salman
will extend his reign as president until at least 2023, by which time he will
have completed a 10-year spell in charge of the 47-member body after initially
completing the truncated term of former president Mohammed bin Hammam. He took
over for the last two years of Bin Hammam's stint as AFC president after the
Qatari was banned for life by governing body FIFA from all football activities
for his involvement in a corruption scandal.

A member of the
Bahrian royal family, Sheikh Salman first came to prominence in footballing
circles in 2009 when he faced off against Bin Hammam for a seat on FIFA's
decision making body, a ballot he lost by a single vote. However, he won the
presidential election in 2013 and was returned unopposed in 2015 before running
unsuccessfully against Gianni Infantino for the position of FIFA president the
following year.

Initially elected
on a platform of accountability, he has becoming increasingly distant during
his presidency, rarely taking questions from the media since winning his second
term of office. The former Bahrain Football Association president has denied
accusations he was involved in human rights abuses by the Gulf state's ruling
family during a crackdown on democracy protesters in 2011.

The issue
resurfaced in January when Sheikh Salman's position in world football was
questioned by campaigners seeking the release of former Bahrain international
Hakeem Al Araibi from a Thai detention centre under threat of extradition to
the Gulf state.

Sheikh Salman did
not comment publicly on the matter and the AFC later claimed to have recused
him 18 months earlier from involvement in matters involving nations in the west
of the continent due to a potential conflict of interests.

Those matters,
though, have done little to dampen enthusiasm for him to remain in charge of
Asia's governing body, with his hopes of reelection boosted in June last year
when he signed off on a new deal for the AFC's commercial and broadcast rights.

The agreement
with Chinese-backed company DDMC Fortis will ensure revenues more than double
from those under the current agreement with long-term partner Lagardere Sports.
Meanwhile, India set their sights on qualifying for the 2026 World Cup as
Praful Patel became their first representative on the powerful FIFA Council
yesterday. Patel, one of six Asian delegates elected to the Council at the
Asian Football Confederation Congress, said the World Cup was the next big step
for India after making great strides in recent years.

India's
confidence has grown after a positive Asian Cup in January, where they returned
to the tournament after eight years and were unlucky not to reach the second
round. "I personally feel that among all the countries in Asia there is a
tremendous goodwill for India, and (also) China should be much more involved in
the game and also the AFC and FIFA," Patel said in Kuala Lumpur. "We
should be putting our best efforts to make sure that the Indian team qualifies in
2026 for the World Cup," he added. However, India are also searching for a
new coach after Englishman Stephen Constantine quit following their Asian Cup
exit after a last-gasp defeat to Bahrain. - Agencies