Bahraini Sheikh Salman bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa announced on Wednesday his intention to run for a third term at the head of the Asian Football Confederation in elections scheduled for 2023, following in the footsteps of his friend, FIFA President Gianni Infantino, who preceded him. to this step. .

Sheikh Salman’s announcement came during his speech at the 32nd General Assembly of the Asian Confederation, which was held on Wednesday via video link technology with the participation of Infantino, members of the executive office of the Continental Confederation, presidents and representatives of 47 Asian countries. national federations.

He said: “As you know, my second term as President of the Asian Football Confederation started in 2019 and ends next year in 2023, and I would like to inform you today that I will run for re-election during the General Assembly meeting. which will be held in Bahrain in early February 2023, in the hope of once again earning your trust and support for a new term as President of the AFC.”

Infantino also announced at the end of March that he was officially running for a third term at the head of the International Federation, a move that was supported by Sheikh Salman and the Asian Federation.

On Wednesday, Infantino praised Sheikh Salman as Asia has become an indispensable cornerstone in the global football system through growing development at various levels, and the AFC President stressed the importance of the existing partnership between continental and international federations, national federations and regional federations to advance the interests of top Asian football .

He touched on the trials that have befallen Asian football during the outbreak of the Corona virus pandemic and its success in overcoming it, saying: “In these times through which we look at the events that have taken place, it is clear that the Asian Football Confederation and national and regional associations moving in the right direction to recover.”

He added: “Despite the spread of the Omicron mutagen, we have entered 2022 with confidence and we owe this to our member associations that hosted the competition, as well as to the teams and clubs that showed a great example of unity during the most difficult tests. “

He expressed his gratitude to the Asian Football Family of FIFA, especially for FIFA’s response to providing support to member associations in the Asian continent to deal with the difficult medical and economic problems caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, reiterating the support of the Confederation and the Asian Football Family for the nomination of Infantino in the FIFA elections. next year.

The General Assembly reviewed China’s decision to withdraw from hosting the 2023 AFC Asian Cup and decided to authorize the Executive Office to select an alternative host after the nomination file submission process through the AFC administration.