International footballing body – FIFA lifted their suspension on India on Friday, 26 August. FIFA had banned the All Indian Football Federation (AIFF) over third party interference.
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. FIFA and the AFC will continue to monitor the situation and will support the AIFF in organising its elections in a timely manner.
The AIFF are scheduled to host their elections on September 2, with former Indian captain Bhaichung Bhutia one of the favourites to take over as the next president. The previous leadership of the AIFF was ousted by the Supreme Court over their failure to hold elections for a prolonged period of time. Previous president Praful Patel was forced to step down from his post, which brought out a can of worms from the AIFF administration after an investigation from the Committee of Administrators.
The removal of ban means that the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup 2022 scheduled to take place on 11-30 October 2022 will be held in India as planned. The World Cup is a huge opportunity for India which allows their host country’s national team to automatically qualify for the main draw of the tournament. Further, Indian teams, both men and women can participate in the continental competitions like the Asian Football Championships.