Fifa call to Danny
Danny Jordaan has been asked to avail himself for a top position in Fifa that could see the South African Football Association (Safa) president follow in German legend Franz Beckenbauer and French counterpart Michel Platini’s footsteps.
Officials within Fifa‚ the Confederation of African Football (Caf) and the Council of Southern Africa Football Associations (Cosafa) recently approached Jordaan and asked him to avail himself for the vacant position on the world football governing body’s allpowerful council.
The elections will be held in Cairo on September 30 and Safa communications manager Dominic Chimhavi said Jordaan was ready to serve wherever football takes him.
“He has the backing of Cosafa and the Cosafa president [Phillip Chiyangwa] has made it clear that he [Jordaan] is the preferred candidate‚” Chimhavi said.
Beckenbauer and Platini ascended to seats on the then Fifa executive committee (now the Fifa council) after leading their countries’ winning World Cup bids (France 1998 and Germany 2006).
Jordaan spearheaded South Africa’s 2006 and 2010 World Cup bids.
The position on the Fifa council became available after a television documentary showed Ghana Football Association president Kwesi Nyantakyi accepting a $65,000 (R876,000) bribe from undercover reporters posing as businessmen early last month.
Nyantakyi resigned in the aftermath of the revelations and his position will be contested by only English-speaking football associations on the continent.
Jordaan currently serves on Caf’s executive committee. –