DILI (29 May 2011) – AFC President Mohamed Bin Hammam withdrew his candidature from the FIFA Presidential election, which is slated for June 1, earlier today.
In a statement posted on his personal website (www.afcpresident.com), the AFC chief said: “It saddens me that standing up for the causes that I believed in has come at a great price – the degradation of FIFA’s reputation. This is not what I had in mind for FIFA and this is unacceptable.
“I cannot allow the name that I loved to be dragged more and more in the mud because of competition between two individuals.
“The game itself and the people who love it around the world must come first. It is for this reason that I announce my withdrawal from the presidential election.”
