Chung protests AFC chief`s remarks at FIFA meeting

SEOUL, March 20 (Yonhap) -- Chung Mong-joon, FIFA vice president, has criticized
the head of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) for threatening to kill a top
Korean football official, sports officials in Seoul said Friday.
Last month, Mohammed Bin Hammam said during a television interview that he was
ready to "cut the head off" of Korea Football Association (KFA) president Cho
Chung-yun, insisting that several Asian football officials -- Koreans among them
-- were plotting to ensure that he lose his FIFA seat.
Chung told FIFA Chairman Joseph Sepp Blatter on the sidelines of an executive
committee meeting in Zurich for the international football governing body that
Bin Hammam's intimidating remark was inappropriate, according the officials in
Seoul.
The South Korean FIFA official also denounced Bin Hammam's autocratic governance
in the AFC in an interview with Swiss media held prior to the meeting, saying he
"causes trouble in the organization, although he is supposed to build unity."
Chung previously served as KFA chief.
Bin Hammam, a Qatari national, is seeking re-election to FIFA's executive
committee but faces stiff opposition from Bahrain Football Association President
Shaikh Salman bin Ibrahim al Khalifa. Bin Hammam has vowed to resign as AFC chief
if he fails to retain his seat on the FIFA executive committee in elections this
May.
FIFA allows four seats on its executive committee for Asia -- one for the FIFA
vice-president, and one each for the Middle East, East Asia and Southeast Asia.
The FIFA seat for the Middle East, held by Bin Hammam since 1996, will be up for
reappointment during an AFC conference scheduled for May.
Bin Hammam was confident of defending his seat in an interview with Bloomberg on
Thursday, saying, "If this game is fair, I think I'm going to get more than 35
votes."
Bin Hammam has served in the top AFC post since 1996. He has been criticized for
running up a substantial deficit and attempting to move AFC headquarters from the
Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur to Qatar or the United Arab Emirates.
Chung has expressed his support for Shaikh Salman for the FIFA seat, and is also
believed to be among the targets of Bin Hammam's aggressive remarks.
brk@yna.co.kr
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