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AFP - Iran has denied receiving a deadline
from FIFA demanding an end to alleged meddling by the government in the
country's football federation.
Former federation chief Mohammad Dadkan and his board were fired after last
summer's World Cup in Germany, and Kiomars Hashemi was installed as the
acting head of the Iranian football federation.
However FIFA reiterated in September that Dadkan, in their view, is still
the Iranian football chief.
And despite a previous warning that Iran has until November 15 to fall into
line with FIFA's rules of non-government intervention, acting chief Hashemi
has denied receiving any deadline letter from either FIFA or the AFC.
"There is no letter from either FIFA or the Asian Football Confederation
(AFC) which has set up a deadline for us, and we have not received any yet,"
said Hashemi.
"Therefore there is no problem in this regard, and issuing a deadline
specifically for Iran is not true," added Hashemi, who is also deputy head
of the Physical Education Organization and was appointed by the government.
Following complaints from lawmakers, Dadkan and his board were fired after
Iran finished bottom of Group D with just one point from three games in the
World Cup.
The federation was taken over by the Physical Education Organization and
that body's deputy chief, Hashemi, was appointed acting head of the
federation.
FIFA spokesman Andreas Herren in September dismissed speculation that
Iranian football officials had resolved their spat with the world governing
body.
He maintained that FIFA's official view is that the board headed by Dadkan
remains the legitimate leadership, internationally recognized by FIFA and by
the Asian Football Confederation.
In July, the AFC refused to recognize the new Iranian football body.
However Hashemi insisted: "We have repeated it so many times; it was Dadkan
who left the federation."
"Can we leave the football federation without a person in charge? Therefore
when Dadkan bid farewell to football we had to appoint someone to handle
it," he added.
If recent events are anything to go by, the current Iran football set-up may
face FIFA sanctions.
World football's ruling body recently banned Kenya for the second time
following the federation's failure to implement reforms aimed at bringing
harmony to its domestic and international scene.
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