GENEVA (AP) — Two-time World Cup coach Takeshi Okada quit as Japanese soccer federation vice president in protest at the politics around FIFA during Gianni Infantino’s campaign to be re-elected.
The Japan Football Association on Wednesday published Okada’s resignation statement dated last Saturday — 24 hours after the Asian Football Confederation had performed a U-turn by publicly supporting Infantino, who seeks a fourth and final presidential term at an election in March.
Infantino has faced backlash since July over his failed World Cup sell-off plan and broader management style including ties to U.S. President Donald Trump, provoking a furor from soccer leaders in Europe, North America and — initially — in Asia.
The 70-year-old Okada, who coached Japan at the 1998 and 2010 World Cups, wrote of his belief “that sports should embody integrity.”
“However, the series of actions surrounding this year’s FIFA World Cup represent a significant divergence from my personal convictions,” Okada said in the statement. “As a sportsman, I cannot accept this.”
Okada acknowledged the complexity of Japan’s place in the politics of world soccer's ruling body FIFA and in Asia, adding he understood “there are practical reasons for aligning with the AFC’s stance.”
Japan wants to host the men's World Cup before 2050, its federation president Tsuneyasu Miyamoto said at an October 2023 online meeting of the AFC that endorsed Saudi Arabia’s bid to host the 2034 edition.
AFC president Sheikh Salman bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa had in August joined two of his fellow FIFA vice presidents, Aleksander Ceferin from UEFA and CONCACAF’s Victor Montagliani, by criticizing Infantino for “deception” and a “fundamental breach of trust” for pushing to sell a permanent stake in World Cup profits. Infantino lined up a $4.2 billion deal with private investors led by Joshua Kushner, younger brother of Jared Kushner, who is married to Trump’s daughter Ivanka.
However, Infantino never lost support from 2022 World Cup host Qatar and seemed to regain trust since August from 2034 host Saudi Arabia, which had withheld public backing before hosting him in Jeddah this month.
The two Gulf states are major power brokers in Asian soccer. Last Friday, Bahrain royal family member Sheikh Salman surprised many global soccer observers by announcing at an AFC assembly in Tokyo it would now endorse Infantino.
The AFC has 46 of the 211 FIFA member associations which will vote in the March 18 election scheduled in Rabat, Morocco.
The 211 members effectively own FIFA as a Switzerland-based nonprofit organization, and have been promised $25 million each by Infantino for development projects and operating costs over the next four years.
European soccer's ruling body UEFA has committed to finding a candidate against Infantino by a FIFA deadline of Nov. 18 to enter the contest.
Fallout from the AFC meetings in Tokyo continued into this week.
Former FIFA vice president Prince Ali bin Al Hussein of Jordan wrote on social media that the AFC meeting on Friday was “pure politics at the behest of Gianni Infantino.”
Prince Ali, who was among four candidates against Infantino in the 2016 FIFA election, said Asia was not united behind the incumbent president and added: “No amount of coercion, threats or bribes should be allowed.”
The AFC said this was “unsubstantiated” and pushed back against the prince's claims no member had been allowed to take the floor to speak.
“Such serious accusations must be supported by credible evidence,” the AFC said, referring Prince Ali's comments to its judicial officials for possible disciplinary action.
In another social media post Wednesday, Prince Ali noted the AFC response and said his initial post was just expressing his view “on the importance of transparency in football governance.”
“It was a statement of principle, not an allegation against any person. Where concerns arise, the proper place for them is the competent bodies,” he posted on X. “I respect the AFC and its judicial bodies and will cooperate fully with any process. As the FIFA Statutes provide, the Jordan Football Association will cast its vote in the FIFA presidential election independently.”
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FILE - Asia Football Confederation President Salman Bin Ibrahim Al-Khalifa, left, poses with FIFA President Gianni Infantino during an inauguration ceremony for the new building of the Asia Football Confederation in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Tuesday, Oct. 30, 2018. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian, File)
FILE - Japan head coach Takeshi Okada gestures during the World Cup round of 16 soccer match between Paraguay and Japan at the Loftus Versfeld Stadium in Pretoria, South Africa, Tuesday, June 29, 2010. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno, File)
