Mundo Deportivo: Jordanian prince calls for the cancellation of secret ballots in FIFA presidential election

Jordanian prince Ali bin Hussein, president of the Jordanian Football Federation, called on Saturday for the cancellation of secret ballots in the FIFA presidential election.

"Amidst the ongoing controversies surrounding FIFA, world football is facing a clear leadership crisis, and the next election is just around the corner. As someone who has been through this process, I believe there is one thing that must be done immediately: abolish the secret ballot system for the FIFA presidential election!" he wrote on social media.

Ali bin Hussein was one of four challengers in the 2016 FIFA presidential election, when Blatter was forced to step down due to a corruption investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice.

In the second round of voting, Gianni Infantino defeated Bahraini Prince Salman bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa, then president of the Asian Football Confederation and now a senior vice president of FIFA, with 115 votes. Ali bin Hussein came in third with 4 votes, while Frenchman Jérôme Champagne received no votes.

After being first elected on February 26, 2016, Infantino was re-elected twice by unanimous vote on June 5, 2019 and March 16, 2023.

This is his second term. Because he was initially elected to complete Blatter's term which began in June 2015, according to the 12-year term set by FIFA after he took office, he can be re-elected at most once more, with his term extending to 2031.

The next election will be held on March 18, 2027, at the 77th FIFA Congress in Rabat.

The Jordanian official pointed out that "all other decisions" made by FIFA, including the selection of the World Cup host city, have now been made public, except for "the presidential election, of course."

He believes that "with a president elected every four years and a council that makes all decisions, only through transparent voting can we, as presidents of the member associations, be accountable to the fans, management and players we elect."

In his view, abolishing secret ballots would be "a protection for every member association that might be forced to make decisions under pressure behind the scenes, as has happened in the past."

“But most importantly, this will give each association greater voting power, because this is our most important vote: deciding the leadership of the world’s largest and most popular sport, and its future direction,” he concluded.