According to FIFA regulations, presidential candidates must have been active in football for two of the five years before being nominated - a requirement Kozo Tashima meets. However, it is unclear whether Tashima can secure the support of at least five of FIFA’s 211 member associations, as required.
“I am happy to announce this, with the full support of the Japanese association,” Kozo Tashima tells Sports Nippon.
FIFA is due to elect a new president in March, and scandal-plagued Gianni Infantino is hoping to be elected for a fourth and final term.
The deadline for nominating candidates is November 18. The Union of European Football Associations (Uefa) is actively looking for a rival candidate to Infantino, while the Asian and African confederations openly support the Swiss. Uefa and the North, Central America and Caribbean associations have called for Infantino’s resignation.
“It is not about winning or losing, but about convincing the world of the Japanese association’s honest intentions. FIFA needs the values we stand for. That’s why I have decided to run,” says 68-year-old Tashima.
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