The election for the Iraqi Football Association is scheduled to be held in Baghdad on the 16th of this month, and there is strong competition among the candidates.
The election will be conducted according to the standards of the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) and under the supervision of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC).
The election is held every four years to elect the new administrative body of the Iraqi Football Association.
There are three candidates for the position of president of the association: Adnan Dirjal, the current president who wants to be re-elected and is a former player for the Iraqi national team; Younis Mahmoud, who holds the position of vice president and is also a former player for the Iraqi national team, intends to become president and believes he will make significant changes; and Ayad Bunyan, an advisor to the Prime Minister of Iraq with administrative expertise.
Several Kurdish sports personalities are candidates for administrative and membership positions in the Iraqi Football Association, aside from the presidency. They are:
From Erbil, Govand Abdulkhaliq Masoud, who is currently a member of the Iraqi Football Association.
From the city of Sulaymaniyah, there are two candidates for membership in the association: Mahmoud Ahmed, known as Hakim Mahmoud, the vice president of Peshmarga Club of Sulaymaniyah, and Dr. Tanya Hassan, a professor at the University of Sulaymaniyah and a specialist in sports education.
From the city of Duhok, Ahmed Qasim, the head of the Iraqi Olympic Committee representation, and Taha Abdulhakim, the supervisor of Zakho Club.
These five are the Kurdish candidates for membership in the Iraqi Football Association.
In total, there are (26) candidates for the positions of vice presidents and members of the Iraqi Football Association.
It is expected that more changes will occur in the way the association is managed, as each candidate has raised several slogans promising to advance the Iraqi Football Association if they become a member, vice president, or president. For this purpose, several rivalries have emerged, and they are seeking the support and votes of the representatives of the clubs participating in the Iraq Stars League, as well as well-known sports personalities and sports presenters who are recognized by the association and have the right to vote for the candidates.
The Iraqi Football Association was founded in 1948 and became a member of FIFA in 1950. In 1971, it joined the Asian Football Confederation. The national team has qualified for the World Cup once, in 1986. It has won the AFC Asian Cup title once, in 2007.
by: Farman Omar Saeed