The Football Association of Thailand on Wednesday officially postponed indefinitely the election for a new president set for Saturday and appointed a first vice-president to temporarily replace Worawi Makudimade who has been banned from all football activities by Fifa for 90 days.
The sudden turnaround came a day after a meeting between a Fifa delegation and FAT officials at a Bangkok hotel. The FAT earlier vowed to go ahead with its scheduled presidential election and hinted that Worawi may run despite the Fifa suspension, which he is appealing.
“Fifa has suggested the postponement of the election to ensure justice for all sides and it does not want to see lawsuits being brought to court after the election,” said Narinpong Jinapak, head of FAT’s legal team.
FAT's executive board made the decision at an urgent meeting in the afternoon. It also agreed to appoint first vice-president Pinyo Nirote as acting FAT president while Worawi’s case was pending.
The international football federation's ethics committee on Monday banned the 63-year-old Worawi from all national and international football activities for 90 days for an ethics breach that will continue to be investigated.
Mr Narinpong said the FAT had submitted Worawi’s appeal to the football governing body to seek further explanation for the ethics breach allegation.
The date for the new election has not been set, Mr Narinpong added.