South African business Mogul Motsepe to be confirmed CAF president

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT |  South African business mogul and President of Mamelodi Sundowns FC, Patrice Motsepe will be confirmed as President of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) today. The new CAF President and part of the Executive Committee will be confirmed during the CAF General Assembly that will take place at the Sofitel Hotel & Resort in Rabat, Morocco. 

Motsepe who is ranked by Forbes as being among the richest men in Africa will take over from Madagascar’s Ahmad Ahmad who was banned by FIFA for among other things corruption and is not eligible to contest in the elections. 

The 59-year-old Motsepe will be crowned CAF President after a deal was brokered when all the three other opponents joined to work with him. Motsepe’s opponents for the race of Presidency included; Jacques Anouma of the Ivory Coast, Augustin Senghor from Senegal and Mauritania Football Federation president Ahmed Yahya. 

They have all joined to work with him and will instead take up other positions on the executive. Senghor, the Senegal Football Federation President and Yahya will be appointed Vice Presidents, while veteran Anouma becomes a Special advisor to the president. 

Motsepe is also the brother-in-law of South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa. Moses Magogo, President of FUFA will continue to serve on the CAF Executive Committee since his term is still running. But the 53 CAF members eligible to vote will however have the opportunity to elect Executive members to represent the Northern, Western A Western B, Central, Central East, Southern Zones and women representative. 

The Assembly to be attended by the FIFA president Gianni Infantino will also elect members to represent Africa on the FIFA Council. They will join the CAF President to bring the number to seven on the FIFA Council for African to seven. While Magogo will attend the Assembly as a CAF Executive member, Uganda is being represented by FUFA’s 1st and 2nd  Vice Presidents Justus Mugisha and Darius Mugoye respectively, and CEO Edgar Watson.

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