Elected in July 2022, Djahid Zefizef has resigned as President of the Algerian Football Federation (FAF). The body, which has been subject to chronic instability for many years, will know its new boss in September.
Between 2001 and 2017, the Algerian Football Federation (FAF) enjoyed stability under the influential Mohamed Raouraoua, although he stepped aside for three years (2006-2009) in favor of Hamid Habbadj, albeit without being far removed from power. Over the last six years, the governing body has had three presidents: Kheireddine Zetch (2017-2021), who at least had the merit of completing his term of office, which was marked by winning the 2019 African Cup of Nations in Egypt, Charaf-Eddine Amara (April 2021-March 2022), who left after the Fennecs were eliminated by Cameroon in the 2022 World Cup qualifiers (1-0, 1-2), and finally Djahid Zefizef.
He preferred to resign after failing to be elected to the Executive Committee of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) on July 13 in Abidjan against Libya's Abdelhakim Al Shalmani, unless he had been politely but firmly asked to leave his presidential chair by the highest authorities of the State. Azeddine Arab, vice-president of the FAF, is in charge of the interim.The former president of ES Setif will be tasked with preparing the next elective General Assembly within 60 days of Zefizef's effective departure.
No official candidate yet
At the time of writing, no candidate has yet officially declared his candidacy. However, the Algerian press is mentioning the names of Raouf Salim Bernaoui, the former Minister of Sport (April 2019-January 2020), and even the return of Charaf-Eddine Amara! "We'll have to see whether Amara can be a candidate, depending on the FAF's statutes. As for Bernaoui, it's definitely a possibility.We'll have to wait a little, but in any case, whoever is elected will be the one who enjoys the support of the authorities, as has always been the case with the FAF's various presidents", explains a source close to the body, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Djamel Belmadi, the Fennecs' coach, who had an excellent relationship with Zefizef, whom he had known when the latter was general manager of the national team, will also have his say. In short, the boxes to tick are not necessarily numerous, but they are certainly unavoidable...
