election but the 79-year-old's resignation on
Tuesday has tempted him to run again
Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein has confirmed that he is
willing to once again stand for Fifa president - but
only if he has the adequate support to radically
reform the organisation.
The Jordanian was the only man to challenge Sepp
Blatter at last Friday's re-election and withdrew his
candidacy after being comprehensively beaten
during the first round of voting (73-133).
However, with Blatter having stepped down on
Tuesday as the corruption scandal engulfing Fifa
intensified, Prince Ali is now willing to put his
name forward again at the Extraordinary Congress
that will soon be arranged to find a new president.
"I'm a servant of football," he told CNN . "I love the
sport and always have. So, we'll have to wait and
see what happens.
"This [Blatter's resignation] was surprise news to
me, as it was to everyone else.
"But, having said that, for sure, I will do my best
to support national associations across the world
to make a brighter future for football.
"That's the most important thing. I have to talk to
national associations and see how they feel about
this, as it's very early.
"But if they want me to do it, I will do it.
"I have to be careful about this. I don't want to see
Fifa going down the wrong path again."
Dutch Football Association (KNVB) president
Michael van Praag, who pulled out of the election
race to throw his support behind Prince Ali, also
intimated that he could re-enter the running.
"Blatter quitting is great news," he told De
Telegraaf . "This weekend I will visit the Excecutive
Committee in Berlin. There, I will talk with a few
people that were involved in this case.
"After that, I will think about what decision I will
take after the resignation of Blatter."
Fifa was rocked by the arrest of several officials
last week as part of an FBI-led investigation into
corruption while there was further controversy on
Tuesday when it emerged that secretary general
Jerome Valcke knew about an alleged bribe paid
into an account owned by former vice-president
Jack Warner for supporting South Africa's bid to
host the 2010 World Cup.
Blatter, who has not been implicated in the
scandal, subsequently decided to bring an end to
his 17-year tenure, claiming that he felt he no
longer had the full support of world football.
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