A Move Forward Party (MFP) MP raised concerns about a potential ban on Thailand by the Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) due to political interference. This comes after Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwan allegedly exerted stress on the President of the Football Association of Thailand (FA Thailand) to resign.
The official Facebook web page of FA Thailand announced on July 1 that its president, Somyot Phumphanmuang, had resigned from his position following directions by Deputy PM Prawit.
This instruction was reportedly given in response to a physical altercation between football players and coaches from Thailand and Malaysia during the recent Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games) held in Cambodia.
Prawit’s order has been interpreted as political interference from a 3rd party which violates FIFA rules and could lead on Thailand to be banned from competing in future competitions.
Deputy PM Prawit yesterday, on July 2, gave an interview with the media concerning the issue. He was confident that Thailand would not face a FIFA ban, as he claims to have issued the order not in his capacity as deputy PM, however as President of the National Olympic Committee of Thailand under the Royal Patronage of His Majesty the King (NOCT).
Prawit stated…
“No, it didn’t involve my deputy PM position at all. I just requested him to contemplate his place after the SEA Games incident which caused a negative impression on the country’s picture.”
Complete stated there’s a chance Thailand might be banned. Nattacha defined that Somyot’s compliance with Prawit’s instruction was evident. A lot of Thai football followers beforehand urged Somyot to resign a number of occasions because of the efficiency of Thai football players however he stood steadfast in his convictions.
Nattacha additional identified that FA Thailand had failed to improve and Somyot had not taken accountability for the matter.
Similar incidents prior to now have led to the banning of soccer teams from varied nations. For instance, Greece confronted a ban when its government intervened within the national team’s administration system.
India was banned in 2022 after its soccer affiliation was dissolved by a court docket order.
In 2018, Indonesia was banned after its authorities took over the management of the soccer affiliation as an alternative of leaving the association as an impartial organisation..