Play store
Former Bangladesh football star Kazi Salahuddin has been re-elected as president of the South Asian Football Federation (SAFF), extending his long tenure at the helm of the regional football body after being elected unopposed at the SAFF Congress in Thimphu, Bhutan, on Saturday.
Although Salahuddin stepped down as president of the Bangladesh Football Federation (BFF) in 2024, he has retained his influential role in South Asian football.
He has led SAFF continuously since first taking office in 2009. His re-election followed constitutional amendments last year that removed the organisation’s presidential term and age limits, paving the way for another term.
Unlike previous elections, Salahuddin did not seek BFF’s official nomination.
Instead, he secured nominations from the football federations of Nepal and Bhutan. With no rival candidate entering the race, his re-election became a formality after the nomination deadline passed.
The SAFF Congress also elected BFF Vice-President Sabbir Ahmed Aref as a member of the SAFF Executive Committee.
The congress also addressed Nepal’s football crisis. SAFF has given Nepal until September to resolve the FIFA suspension currently imposed on its football federation.
If the ban is lifted within the deadline, Nepal will be allowed to participate in the upcoming SAFF Championship. Otherwise, the team will be excluded from the tournament.
According to SAFF officials, should Nepal’s suspension be lifted in time, the country will be placed in the same group as hosts Bangladesh for the championship.
The coming weeks are therefore expected to determine whether one of South Asia’s strongest football nations will feature in the regional tournament.
