Tag: Hassan Kamaranifar

Kamaranifar claims FIFA will partly release some funds to FFIRI

According to Mehr reporter, Hassan Kamranifar, the Secretary General of the Football Federation, as a representative of the Iranian national team, attended the recent FIFA coordination meeting in Zurich, Switzerland, where all the 32 finalist teams sent delegates.

Terms, conditions, local laws, and other requirements for the World Cup competition including the number of players in each team and other requirements that the teams need to adhere to were communicated to the delegate.  FIFA officials also held bilateral meetings with all the finalist’s delegates. In the meeting held between FIFA and FFIRI representative, KamraniFar discussed with FIFA the issue of blocked funds that FFIRI has to receive as prize money for Iran’s qualification to the FIFA World Cup in which FIFA awards each finalist a lump sum months before the start of the competition. The Preparation money is a FIFA award of $2.5 million as a guaranteed payment to each and every 32 national teams participating in World Cup 2022.

The meeting was attended by officials from the legal and financial department of FIFA  who heard the FFIRI demands. After returning from his trip to Switzerland, the Secretary General of the Iranian Football Federation presented the outcome of the discussion with FIFA  to Mirshad Majedi and the members of the Board of Directors. In an informal meeting, Kamranifar said that he received the green light from FIFA for partial payment of the US$2.5 million using various methods through Banks before the start of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. Therefore, intensive correspondence between FFIRI & FIFA has started in order to channel the funds through the banks of the Persian Gulf region and settle the current financial problems. Now, it remains to be seen whether Kamranifar’s good news to the officials of the Football Federation will come true soon, or whether the financial sanctions will still prevent the transfer of this money to the country.

Team Melli is heating up within. The problems are far from over.

The publication of a statement by a group of Team Melli players headed by Mehdi Tarimi including Karim Ansarifard, Alireza Jahanbakhsh, Ezatollahi, and Ehsan Haj Safi, in connection with the state of the football federation and the national team coach, prompted a sharp reaction by FFIRI through its spokesperson Hassan Kamranifar, the Secretary General of this federation.

“First of all, it is necessary to mention that the football federation is governed completely independently in accordance with international rules and its own charter. At no time this federation has received orders from anyone. There is no interference in the affairs of the federation.  An example of this issue was the rumors about attempts to change the coaching staff of Team Melli, at the end,  you all saw that only the federation management makes such decisions independent of outside elements. Although I don’t want to talk about the elections, I just would like to point out that there is no interference in these issues.”

The Secretary General of the FFIRI said: “We should appreciate the supporting role of the Parliament in approving and allocating government aid, especially for the purpose of supporting the national team and pursuing the rewards of the national team players. When the parliament support allocating government funds to the federations, we also consider it our duty to answer to the parliament in the field of how we spend government grants, this is not intervention, but a supervisory duty of the people’s representatives.”

Kamranifar was asked about an alleged demand by several Team Melli players asking that two Members of Parliament Ghazizadeh Hashemi and Pejmanfar, cease their interference in football. However, Kamranifar did not respond to this statement.

The issue revealed the extent of differences and divisions between Iranian national team players once again which prompted Kamranifar to respond strongly. The General Secretary of the Football Federation said: “The explicit demand of the Federation from the members of the national team is to observe professional ethics and not to interfere in other departments and take a stand on issues that are not within the player’s responsibility. Division and partisan in Team Melli is our red line and we will not tolerate it at all.”

Kamranifar added: “National team players may have concerns, some of them could be legitimate, but these issues should be discussed in their own place and between family members not going public. There is a process for that.  Some actions and behaviors are not acceptable.”

In the end, the Secretary-General said: “The explicit request of the Federation’s Board of Directors is to establish complete discipline and stability in the national team and to stand against any division, split, and marginalization. The federation will fully support the national team with all its might, and of course, we will take action to identify external divisive agents of whom we are fully aware and who are trying to get close to the national team with these measures.”

 

COMMENTS ON FFIRI KAMARANIFAR STATEMENT

The disturbing part of this issue lies in the fact that a struggle is brewing among the members of Team Melli some of whom think that they are better equipped and qualified to run the federation and decide whom to appoint as Head Coach.  Led by Mehdi Taremi, a player who is notorious for lack of discipline and professional ethics, this group is making trouble by recruiting other players like Jahanbakhsh who is a key element in the squad and not the rebel type. FFIRI reaction says much about how much they are concerned hence the strong tone of Kamaranifar. However, besides the pseudo threats, there was nothing to deter the troublemaker.

Many feel that this Federation is standing  on weak ground at this period of time with a lack of legitimate leadership and the coming elections. Those who aim to sit at the top are non-commital to this serious issue. No one wants to take a stand just in case it is the wrong one therefore putting their election in jeopardy. No one is ready to make a decision against the rebels who are supported by outside elements including an influential football agent who would gain much by the change of the Head Coach with expected hefty commision. In the end, the more this conflict and division drag on, the worst it will become.

About the Federation’s independence, Kamaranifar lies up to his teeth. It is not even a secret that FFIRI is run by the government. Kamaranifar’s own admission that funds and grants are being received by the government proves it. The demand by the rebel players and FFIRI that the Parliament stops interfering in football sound quite unreasonable too. After all, the FFIRI and the Players are awarded funds from the public coffers from the money that can be spent on many other projects. What right have they to say to the Parliament “Shut up and Pay Up?”

An organization can only operate independently if it generates its own revenue and has a proper balance sheet. It is not the case with FFIRI which has always pleaded for handouts from the government and thereupon the government would have its own terms and condition. FFIRI and rightly so has to answer to people’s representatives for all the money that is being given to them freely. That is the rationale.