World soccer governing body FIFA has provisionally lifted the suspension that would have disqualified Iraq from the World Cup.
See previous diary for background.
Last week, the Iraqi government issued a decree dissolving the country's Olympic Committee on grounds of inactivity and corruption. Seems that the committee had not met in five years, partly because the chairman has been missing since his 2006 kidnapping. The suspension was a blatant breach of Olympic regulations and prompted FIFA, the world governing body of soccer, to suspend Iraq from all international competitions less than a week before Iraq's crucial qualifying match at Australia on Sunday. Iraq had until Thursday (Sydney time) to resolve the matter or face a one-year suspension.
According to a New York Times story, FIFA has been sufficiently satisfied to lift the suspension pending final resolution. Iraq is currently last in the four-team qualifying pool and needs a win to have a chance of advancing to the next round. After that, Iraq has games against, China, Qatar, and Australia again. (By the way, Iraq plays its "home" games in Dubai.)
The suspension, of course, didn't sit well with Iraqi fans (McClatchy).
"No water, no electricity and no sports," Omar Mohammed, 28, said as he prepared sandwiches at a shop in Adhamiyah. "This is mass murder and deliberate execution."
As you'll recall, Iraq won the Asian Cup last year in a campaign that mesmerized the entire country and brought a temporary wave of unity. The victory also qualified Iraq for the Confederations Cup, a mini-World Cup featuring the world's continental champions to be held next year in South Africa. The U.S. team has also qualified by beating Mexico last summer in the Gold Cup final. U.S. vs. Iraq soccer match, anyone?
CBC: Soccer body tells Iraq to take hands off its federation
http://www.cbc.ca/...
McClatchy: Iraqi Olympic Committee again at center of sports dispute
http://www.mcclatchydc.com/...
Brisbane Times: PM's adviser accuses committee of corruption
http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/...
BBC: Fifa relaxes Iraqi World Cup ban
http://news.bbc.co.uk/...