World Football governing Body, FIFA revoked the ban that it had placed on the All India Football Federation (AIFF) earlier in the month of August.
The official statement from the global football governing body on August 26 stated, “The Bureau of the FIFA Council has decided to lift the suspension that was imposed on the All India Football Federation (AIFF) due to undue third-party influence.”
The statement also added that the decision was taken after FIFA received confirmation that the mandate of the Committee of Administrators that was set up to assume the powers of the AIFF Executive Committee had been terminated and that the AIFF administration had regained full control of the AIFF’s daily affairs.
As a result of this decision, India can now host the U-17 Women’s World Cup as scheduled.
The Secretary General of the FIFA Bureau, Fatma Samoura, wrote a letter to the AIFF acting General Secretary Sunando Dhar on August 26, stating that the Bureau of the FIFA Council had decided to revoke the ban on August 25.
The letter stated that the Bureau of the FIFA Council received the latest information on the AIFF’s situation.
The letter from FIFA, apart from allowing AIFF to host the FIFA U-17 Women’s Word Cup scheduled to take place from 11-30th October 2022, also stated that further communication with the AIFF will follow regarding the holding of its elections on September 2.
AIFF acting General Secretary Sunando Dhar said: “The darkest hour of Indian Football is finally over. The suspension that was slapped on midnight of August 15 on the AIFF, has been lifted by FIFA.
We sincerely thank FIFA and AFC, especially the AFC General Secretary Datuk Seri Windsor John for guiding us in such difficult times. We also take this opportunity to express our sincere thanks to the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, and the Hon’ble Sports Minister Shri Anurag Thakur ji for solidly standing by us at this crucial juncture.”
