FIFA poised to expel Oman
5 July 2012 07:47
Oman is facing expulsion from the 2014 World Cup qualifying tournament as well as an international ban.
FIFA has admitted it is concerned at developments in the Middle East country after a court order enforced annulling last year's Omani Football Association (OFA) elections.
In an official statement released, FIFA said it may heavily sanction the federation and national team if the results of last year's elections, which were held under the strict observation of the world body and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), were rejected.
The potential annulment comes after the June 25 court ruling which came about after three clubs complained about the election process.
Paul Le Guen's Oman side are competing in the final round of Asian qualifiers for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, where they gained two points from their opening three matches against Japan, Australia and Iraq.
"All FIFA members associations have to manage their affairs independently and without influence of any third parties," a FIFA statement read.
"Such a suspension would jeopardise the participation of Oman in the 2014 World Cup qualifiers and other international competitions, and would also entail that neither the OFA nor any of its members or officials could benefit from any development programme, course, or training from FIFA or the AFC while the OFA is suspended."
