Asian Football Confederation Boss Sheikh Salman Praises Asian Unity

Asian Football Confederation (AFC) President, Sheikh Salman bin Ebrahim al Khalifa, stressed the importance of Asian unity to maintain the stability of the AFC at a meeting with Presidents and Officials from ASEAN Member Associations on Monday.

Shaikh Salman said the Asian football family shares the same ambition of developing the game across the continent and he stressed the role of Member Associations is crucial in reaching this goal. He added that a stable AFC would allow the Confederation to achieve great things in the coming years.

The AFC President explained the AFC Member Association Development projects that have been implemented in the last few years to help the Member Associations grow stronger on technical and management levels. He also re-iterated that the AFC will introduce further projects in the future according to the AFC website.

Shaikh Salman added that regular meetings with the Member Associations are essential in helping strengthen the relations among the Asian football family as they offer the chance to share ideas, expertise and ambitions.

He also hailed the role of AFC Member Associations in developing the game in their respective countries and said they had raised the level of both national teams and match officials not only in ASEAN but across Asia.

Shaikh Salman also congratulated the ASEAN teams on their latest achievements and, in particular, the President praised Vietnam, who had reached the final of the recent AFC U23 Championship in China. The AFC President also thanked the ASEAN countries successfully hosting several AFC competitions.

The representatives of the ASEAN Member Associations, in turn, welcomed the open door policy of the AFC President and said that it reflected his appreciation for the work of the Member Associations' and that the approach benefits the interests of the game in Asia.