Sports

SEOUL — South Korean powerbroker Chung Mong-joon is leaning toward running for the FIFA presidency as a replacement for Sepp Blatter, telling The Associated Press that a non-European leader would help breathe “new wind” into football’s international governing body.

A former FIFA vice president, Chung also criticised the decision this week to allow Blatter to remain as president until the election on February 26, despite calls for him to immediately step down amid mounting pressure to reform as US and Swiss authorities investigate allegations of corruption.

“Blatter has been doing whatever he wants with FIFA for 40 years since his days as general secretary and while he said he’s going out, it doesn’t seem he really is,” Chung told the AP in a telephone interview Tuesday. “Letting Blatter manage FIFA and design reform plans before the February vote is comedy.”

Chung, who was a key figure in helping South Korea land the right to co-host the 2002 World Cup with Japan, has been a longtime critic of Blatter, whom he described as a dictatorial “little brat” in a memoir published in 2011.

Chung was a FIFA vice president for 17 years and was once considered a candidate to succeed Blatter before losing his seat in 2011. The billionaire scion of the Hyundai business group has also been a South Korean lawmaker and presidential candidate.

Chung said he plans to consult leaders of regional confederations and other key figures before he finalises his decision whether to run for FIFA’s top job. If he becomes president, Chung said he would aim to eliminate corruption and improve its accounting transparency. He said he would also try to strengthen football in Asia and other regions where the sport has most room to grow.

“I am positively considering running for the presidency and will be able to reveal my decision soon,” he said.

The February 26 date agreed by FIFA’s executive committee on Monday was a political victory for Blatter over European governing body UEFA and its supporters in other continents who wanted a December ballot.

UEFA President Michel Platini, Brazil great Zico and Liberia federation President Musa Bility are among the likely contenders to run for the FIFA presidency.

When asked about his potential chances, Chung said “there is no such thing as an easy election”.

“I have tried several times to become FIFA president, experienced parliamentary elections and also tried to become South Korean president,” he said, “so you could trust me on that.”

Blatter has seven months left at the top of world football’s governing body but his hope of putting the organisation’s troubles behind him before he goes looks forlorn.

Blatter, elected to the top position in 1998, will stand down on the date FIFA selected for an “elective congress” to choose his replacement.

FIFA’s answer on Monday to the corruption scandal that has engulfed it since the arrests of senior officials in May on US fraud and money laundering charges, was to announce the creation of another “task force” made up of people from within the body.

The 79-year-old Blatter clearly hopes they will come up with a package of reforms that will placate his critics and those of the organisation.

“My responsibility and mission is to make sure when at the end of February I come to the end of my career, I can say in FIFA we have started again the reform and have rebuilt the reputation of FIFA,” Blatter told a news conference.

But even if his task force, made up of representatives of the regional confederations but with a “neutral chairman” makes progress, it is hard to see how Blatter’s final months in charge will be anything other than fraught.

The US Department of Justice investigation into corruption, kickbacks and racketeering in football could lead to more charges, especially if some of those indicted agree to cooperate with authorities.

Blatter has not been charged with any wrongdoing. But former FIFA vice-president and CONCACAF President Jeffrey Webb of the Cayman Islands, widely praised by Blatter and seen as his protege, pleaded not guilty in federal court in New York on Saturday to charges of racketeering conspiracy, wire fraud and money laundering. He was released on $10 million bail.

In addition to the criminal case, the US Securities and Exchange Commission regulator was examining the behaviour of several companies with links to FIFA and other football organisations to see if there were possible violations of bribery laws.

AMMAN — Jordan’s U-16 football team will host the UAE in two friendlies this weeks as they head into the final week ahead of the 5th West Asian Championship kicking off in Amman on July 29 with Iran, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Iraq, Palestine and Jordan competing for the title.

The team increased its training regimen, but some technical issues plagued its preparedness with coach Abdullah Qitati trying to best prepare the line-up on both the fitness and competitive sides, as head coach Eric Deletang took time off earlier this month with the West Asian Championship only a week away. 

In addition, the team played only two friendlies against Palestine which it beat 2-0 after losing the first match 3-2.

Qitati was quoted as saying the past few weeks helped boost the team’s preparedness describing the squad as “upbeat and serious”.

The coach said he hoped the next two matches against the UAE on July 22 and 24 will help the team’s competitive form, adding “we hope officials will succeed in securing additional serious friendlies as they are vital for our upcoming agenda “.

Following the West Asia event, the U-16 might host its Saudi and Syrian counterparts to put finishing touches ahead of Group B qualifiers for the 2016 AFC U-16 Asian Championship, where Jordan will play alongside Nepal, Oman and Kyrgyzstan from September 12 -20 in Kyrgyzstan.

India will host the 2016 AFC U-16 championship with a total of 45 nations, including the hosts participating in the qualifiers, and the draw seeding based on the rankings from the last edition in 2014 won by North Korea. The 45 nations were divided into two qualifying zones — West Zone with 24 teams and East Zone with 21 teams. Eleven group winners and four best second-placed teams will qualify for the finals, with hosts India receiving an automatic qualification (total 16 teams). In case India finish top of its qualifying group or among the four best second-placed teams, the next (5th) second best placed nation will qualify for the final competition.

Jordan was eliminated from the 2014 AFC U-16 qualifiers held in Amman after finishing last in Group D. Jordan lost to Afghanistan and Saudi Arabia twice by 2-1, and drew 4-4 with Syria.

ZURICH — FIFA will hold a presidential election on February 26, seemingly giving Sepp Blatter seven more months in power before leaving the scandal-tainted governing body.

The date was chosen by FIFA’s executive committee on Monday, after Blatter announced plans to resign four days following his re-election in May amid American and Swiss criminal investigations into corruption.

The 79-year-old Blatter, who first joined FIFA 40 years ago, has held onto the most world powerful job in world football since 1998.

FIFA’s 209 members, who elected Blatter to a fifth term in May, will return to Zurich next year to select a new president almost nine months after Blatter’s resignation statement.

Potential contenders include UEFA President Michel Platini and HRH Prince Ali, who lost to Blatter in May.

Former Brazil great Zico and Liberia football federation President Musa Bility have said they will seek the five nominations required by the October 26 deadline.

FIFA announced the election date shortly before a scheduled news conference by Blatter. The FIFA executive committee meeting was also due to discuss ways of reforming the organisation to regain the trust of fans and sponsors, including presidential term limits.

Prince Ali on Monday joined World Cup sponsor Coca-Cola and former FIFA advisers Transparency International in calling for Blatter to be excluded from the process of shaping the organisation’s future after a litany of scandals on his watch.

Prince Ali told The Associated Press that Blatter “cannot be permitted to plan his succession and manage this election process”.

“President Blatter’s resignation cannot be dragged out any longer. He must leave now,” Prince Ali, an ex-FIFA vice president (for four years until May), said in a statement to the AP.

“An interim independent leadership must be appointed to administer the process of the elections, in addition to the reforms that are being discussed prior to the elections,” he added.

Reformers want FIFA to appoint a respected figure from outside the sport to oversee the next election and reforms of FIFA.

Kofi Annan, the former United Nations secretary general from Ghana, has been mentioned for the role.

“The rumours linking Mr Annan to the FIFA job are just that: rumours,” Annan’s office told the AP, stressing that he is currently “fully committed” to other roles.

Bility, the Liberian federation head, said he was “very disappointed” with the February 26 election date.

“It does not reflect the urgency of the situation,” he told the AP by telephone. “The anxiety, the wait cannot help knowing that we expect to have a new leadership.”

Bility said he is sure he will secure the nominations required to make the ballot.

“I am very encouraged,” he said. “You know I am keen viewing those rumours of those who are running. I don’t see any new faces. They are all names who have been around for all these years.”

Blatter’s news conference at FIFA was disrupted and delayed by a British comedian’s stunt.

As Blatter took his seat, performer Simon Brodkin rose from a front-row seat to speak and shower the FIFA president with dollar bills.

The comedian also tried to disrupt a performance by Kanye West at the Glastonbury festival in Britain last month.

On Monday, he was ushered out of the auditorium at FIFA headquarters.

Blatter said he would leave the room for a few minutes because “we have to clean here first.”

He said “this has nothing to do with football.”

NICE — Tributes poured in for French driver Jules Bianchi, who died from injuries sustained in a head-on crash during the Japanese Grand Prix last October.

The 25-year-old Bianchi died in a hospital in his hometown of Nice, his family said in a statement released early Saturday.

Nice was about 30 kilometres from the track where he sealed the best performance of his young Formula One career, the Monaco Grand Prix. It was on Monaco’s tight and sinewy circuit last year that Bianchi, driving for Marussia — now known as Manor Marussia — finished in ninth place and gave the unheralded team its best finish and first points in F1.

“Words cannot describe the enormous sadness within our team this morning, as we come to terms with losing Jules,” said John Booth, team principal of Manor Marussia. “He has left an indelible mark on all our lives, and will forever be part of everything we have achieved, and everything we will strive for going forward.”

Bianchi’s drive that day was a mixture of flair, steely determination, and panache; exactly the traits that were spotted in him early on, when he was touted as a future star after graduating from the Ferrari academy in 2009. He competed in 34 Grand Prix.

“Jules was a shining talent. He was destined for great things in our sport: Success he so richly deserved,” Booth said in a statement. “He was also a magnificent human being, making a lasting impression on countless people all over the world ... he was an extremely warm, humble and intensely likable person who lit up our garage and our lives.”

F1 champion Lewis Hamilton tweeted: “A sad, sad day today, guys. Please pray for Jules’ loved ones. RIP Jules. God bless.” His Mercedes teammate Nico Rosberg also offered his condolences.

Bianchi was a much-liked driver in the sometimes edgy and brittle F1 championship.

Countryman Romain Grosjean, a rival driver for Lotus, expressed that reality in this tweet: “Yesterday we lost one of the best guys and best drivers I’ve ever met. I’ll miss you so much my friend.”

British driver Max Chilton, Bianchi’s teammate last year, tweeted: “No words can describe what his family and the sport have lost. All I can say it was a pleasure knowing and racing you.”

McLaren tweeted: “The thoughts of everybody at McLaren are with the friends and family of Jules Bianchi. You will be sorely missed. [hashtag]RIPJules [hashtag]ForzaJules”

Frenchman Jean-Eric Vergne, who raced against Grosjean and Bianchi, said: “I have no words... We will miss you my old friend...” Alongside his tweet, Vergne added a photo of a fresh-faced Bianchi, the joy and optimism clear on his face.

As part of its online tributes, L’Equipe’s website showed a collection of pictures of a young Bianchi.

One showed Bianchi aged 4, driving a toy go-kart, a look of fixed concentration on his face, and another with proud father and son together after a junior karting race.

“He only had that [racing] in mind,” his father Philippe said in an interview with Var-Matin newspaper. “We looked after a track in Antibes and he would spend his time watching the customers going around the tarmac. As soon as his feet touched the pedals, he wanted to climb into a kart.”

Former F1 driver Jean Alesi, who raced in 202 GPs, also paid his respects.

“He fought right until the end. We thought a miracle could happen,” Alesi told RMC radio. “He was an endearing boy, very fair on the track and outside of it. He was well loved. He was joie de vivre personified. It’s a shock for everyone.”

Bianchi was from racing stock.

His great uncle Lucien Bianchi raced in 17 GPs and competed in the Le Mans 24 Hours. He died in 1969, in an accident during testing at the Le Mans track, a year after winning the race.

“The world of motorsport is in mourning today,” motorsport’s governing body FIA said in a statement. “The sport has lost one of the most talented drivers of this generation, from a family that has such a strong presence in the history of the sport.”

Bianchi is the first driver to die of injuries sustained in an F1 race since three-time world champion Ayrton Senna and Austrian driver Roland Ratzenberger were killed at the 1994 San Marino GP.

Bianchi died at the Centre Hospitalier Universitaire in Nice, where he had been since his emergency treatment in Japan in the days after the accident.

“Twenty-one years after the deaths of Ayrton Senna and Roland Ratzenberger, we have now lost Jules, who has died as a direct consequence of an on-track accident,” the Grand Prix Drivers Association said in a statement. “Despite considerable improvements, we, the Grand Prix drivers, owe it to the racing community, to the lost ones and to Jules, his family and friends, to never relent in improving safety.”

Bianchi’s accident occurred at the end of the race at the Suzuka Circuit. In rainy, gloomy conditions, Bianchi’s car slid off the track and ploughed into a crane picking up the Sauber of German driver Adrian Sutil, who crashed in the same spot one lap earlier.

“Last night we lost a truly great guy and a real fighter,” British driver Jenson Button, the 2009 F1 champion, tweeted.

Finnish driver Valtteri Bottas of the Williams team tweeted “You will be never forgotten.”

Nicolas Deschaux, the president of the French Motorsport Federation, paid tribute on France Info radio.

“Jules Bianchi was one of the surest hopes for French motorsport,” Deschaux said. “He was brimming with talent and well-liked by all drivers. The world of motorsport is grieving today.”

Tributes came in from outside of F1, and outside of sport itself.

The Elysee Palace of French President Francois Hollande expressed its “sincere condolences”.

World rally champion Sebastien Ogier tweeted: “So sad to hear Jules Bianchi passed away,” while French tennis player Caroline Garcia said, “Such sadness to hear about the death of Jules Bianchi at the age of 25.”

Luc Alphand, a former French Alpine skier who then switched sports and drove in the Dakar Rally, said on BFMTV that “when destiny strikes in this way, it’s truly awful.”

PARIS — As FIFA slid toward what has now become a full-blown collapse of its reputation and credibility, one of Sepp Blatter’s advisers suggested to the president of football’s governing body that he should lift the lid on one of his most tightly guarded secrets.

Reveal how much FIFA pays you, Mark Pieth advised. The Swiss anti-corruption expert, recruited by FIFA for his expertise in corporate governance, says he argued that disclosing Blatter’s salary would demonstrate that the discredited organisation is committed to change and transparency.

Blatter wouldn’t have it.

Pieth says the FIFA president explained that doing so risked embarrassing and upsetting his allies on the FIFA board whose pay is also secret.

“He told me: ‘Well, you know, I couldn’t,’” the Basel University professor recalls. “’It wouldn’t go down well with my friends.’”

One million dollars? Five million? More than that? Two years after Blatter rejected Pieth’s advice, the exact extent of his salary and perks remain known only by him and a seeming tiny handful of perhaps no more than four others at FIFA headquarters.

Here is a look at why the secrecy should be lifted:

Set an example

Founded in 1904 with the simple aim of organising football internationally, FIFA has grown into a multi-billion dollar global enterprise largely thanks to the World Cup’s financial success under Blatter’s reign since 1998.

Like multi-national corporations, it publishes detailed annual financial accounts and is audited. Beset by allegations of vote-buying and corruption involving members of its ruling executive committee, FIFA also in 2011 launched reforms that tightened, the way it does business but which haven’t gone far enough for its many critics.

Failing to publish the pay of Blatter and other executives gives the impression that FIFA must still have something to hide, when it should set an example for football to follow.

“The old idea is these guys just put their hand in the till and distribute money wildly because they have so much of it,” Pieth said in a phone interview with The Associated Press.

Others do better

Some football organisations are far more open, making FIFA look secretive.

Obliged to do so by US law, the US Football Federation that governs the sport in the United States files tax returns that give astounding detail about executive compensation when compared to FIFA. The filings are easy to find on the federation website.

The most recent shows federation CEO Dan Flynn got a base salary of $528,209, plus $102,250 in bonuses, for an average 40 hours of work per week in the 2013 tax year and even that the federation pays his health club bill of $180 per month.

The accounts for England’s Football Association, also accessible via its website, aren’t as transparent but do show — as required by British law — that the highest paid director got £550,000 ($850,000) in salary and benefits.

Governed by Swiss law, FIFA’s public accounts lack such detail. They say $39.7 million was paid to “key management personnel” in 2014. That included Blatter and the 24 other members of his executive committee, plus 12 executives at FIFA headquarters. If evenly split between all 37 people, that would be $1 million each. FIFA says the total includes gross salary and social charges but won’t break down who got what or even answer questions about why it fails to do so.

“We have no further comments on individual compensation,” it said by e-mail to the AP.

COPY CONCACAF: The governing body for football in the North and Central Americas and the Caribbean has been hit hard by the latest corruption scandal. Its former general secretary, Chuck Blazer, pleaded guilty in the United States to racketeering, income tax evasion, wire fraud and money laundering conspiracies and was banned from the game for life on Thursday by FIFA’s ethics committee.

To prevent the confederation from imploding, CONCACAF this week announced reforms that include exemplary policies on pay which will be more transparent than FIFA’s. As US Football does, tax returns reporting executive salaries will be published on CONCACAF’s website. CONCACAF is also proposing that executives’ compensation be approved annually by its congress.

These changes could pressure others, including FIFA, to follow suit.

“We think if we can do it, they can do it,” CONCACAF legal adviser Sam Gandhi said in an AP phone interview. “Sports federations shouldn’t be worried about the truth. ... If people are valuable, people recognise that they should be paid a valuable amount. But we shouldn’t have anything to hide when it comes to this stuff.”

Cost vs worth

FIFA executive committee members are treated like royalty, housed in the best hotels, ferried in limousines and, on top of reportedly generous per diems when conducting FIFA business, also paid $300,000 a year, one insider confirmed to AP.

Without breaking down the expenses, FIFA’s accounts show it spends a prince’s ransom on meetings: $35.5 million in 2014, including travel and accommodation for its 209 member associations to a congress in Brazil.

Jim Boyce, an executive committee member from 2011-2015, bristled at the suggestion that FIFA is overly lavish.

“Bankers, for example, are getting millions of bloody bonuses and all the rest of it and their banks are going down the tube,” he said in an AP interview. “There are many people in many walks of life who are paid a salary for doing a job... That’s a personal thing between a company and the employee. It’s not dishonest if people pay their taxes.”

But without detail on who gets what exactly, it’s impossible for outsiders to judge whether FIFA and the sport it is meant to serve is getting value for money.

Obstacles

When Blatter announced June 2 that he’ll be standing down, he also said he would use his remaining months to drive “far-reaching, fundamental reforms”. Domenico Scala, overseeing that effort, said one goal is to publish the pay of the president and executive committee members, because “FIFA recognises that many have questioned the transparency by which FIFA operates.”

But how that will be done and whose approval they need wasn’t explained and FIFA wouldn’t elaborate when asked by AP. While some executives say they wouldn’t mind if their salaries are made public, others from countries where pay is seen as more of a private matter and not easily discussed may resist.

And Blatter’s record doesn’t inspire confidence that he can pass this last big test of his presidency.

“Whenever Blatter has a choice where to side whether with his friends or with the general public, with the critics and so on,” noted Pieth, “he chose to side with his friends.”

AMMAN — The Kingdom’s football teams have started to finalise their line-ups as they get ready for the local and regional football agendas. 

On the clubs level, the 33rd Super Cup will see league champs Wihdat play Jordan Cup titleholders Faisali in the opening of the 2015-16 football season on August 21. The Jordan Professional League is set to kick off on September 10 and the preliminary round of the Jordan Cup is set for September 13 for First Division teams from which four teams will join the knockout Round of 16 of the Jordan Cup, which will be played from September 27-30 and the quarters from December 25.

Wihdat, who won their 14th league title as well as 32nd Super Cup last year, are scrambling to boost their line-up and have signed former star Abdullah Theeb as they hope to retain local titles and compete on the Asian scene with Syrian coach Imad Khankan leading the team this season. 

For the first time in years, last season saw Wihdat trailed in runner-up and third place by Jazira and Ramtha. After finishing at a disappointing 7th place in the League, Faisali managed to beat That Ras to win the 35th Jordan Cup title. The league’s top two teams will also represent Jordan in regional events such as the AFC Cup and Asian Champions League.

Last season also witnessed a big battle at the other end of the standings as Ittihad Ramtha were relegated to Division 1 after failing to score a single win, and former champs Shabab Urdun and Faisali could have easily followed suit. It was only in the final week that Baqaa also held on to their post and Manshieh were relegated.

On the Asian club level, Wihdat and Jazira’s impressive run at Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Cup came to an end in the Round of 16. 

All national teams are busy this season. Jordan lost to Qatar in the final match of the 8th West Asian Football Championship (WAFC) last year and this season the squad has started Group B qualifiers for the 2018 World Cup in Russia, doubling as part of the qualification for 2019 Asian Cup as well. The Kingdom beat Tajikistan 3-1 in its opening match and will play Kyrgyzstan on September 3.

The women’s team topped Asian Group B qualifiers and moved to Round 2 — the second phase of the qualifying journey to the 2016 Summer Olympics Football tournament.

Jordan’s U-16 boys team has started the final countdown to the 5th West Asian Championship kicking off in Amman on July 29. 

“We hope the officials will succeed in securing serious friendlies as they are vital for our upcoming agenda,” U-16 coach Abdullah Qitati was quoted as saying after the team only played two friendlies against Palestine whom they beat 2-0 after losing the first match 3-2. The U-19 team is gearing up for Asian Football Association U-19 qualifiers kicking off October 2 and the U-23 are slated to play the first West Asian Championship kicking off on September 29.

MADRID — Former Barcelona and Spain midfielder Xavi has hit out at Real Madrid for failing to give departing captain and goalkeeper Iker Casillas the send-off he deserved before his switch to Porto.

A tearful Casillas appeared alone in the Bernabeu Stadium press room on Sunday and the 34-year-old choked up several times as he read a farewell statement that brought to an end 16 seasons in the Real first team.

A wave of criticism followed, with Casillas’s parents also saying in a newspaper interview their son had been forced out of the club by President Florentino Perez.

Real responded by organising an official presentation with Perez and Casillas at the Bernabeu on Monday, when hundreds of fans who turned up in sweltering heat chanted for the president to quit and gave Casillas a rousing ovation.

The contrast between Sunday’s surreal appearance and the send-off Barca gave his close friend Xavi was telling.

A product of Barca’s academy, Xavi, 35, joined Qatari side Al Sadd at the end of last season and fans, officials and team mates paid homage to him at a packed Nou Camp stadium where the midfielder was surrounded by family and friends.

Xavi wrote in Spanish daily La Vanguardia on Tuesday that Casillas had not changed since they first met at the U-17 World Cup in Egypt in 1997 and that he remained “a good person”.

“That’s why it leaves a bad taste what is happening with him now,” Xavi wrote.

“In recent years, I have seen that he is not enjoying himself like before.

“He even seems bitter and I think everyone in this country [Spain] should think about this.

“It cannot be that maturing Spanish athletes are not shown sufficient respect, that people neglect to value everything they have done for their sport and instead focus on their defects, sometimes with malicious intent.”

Xavi drew a comparison with Juventus and Italy keeper Gianluigi Buffon, who he said still appeared to be enjoying himself in goal at the age of 37.

“I look at Iker and I have the feeling that lately he is playing under pressure, as if he has to prove what a great keeper he is in every match, without the joy he always had.

“Now he is going to Porto and I am sure he will be welcomed as a hero. Away from here they will appreciate him more.”

Casillas had no words of regret or rancor as he put an emotional end to his 25 years as a Real Madrid goalkeeper on Sunday, promising instead to “not let down” his new fans at FC Porto.

“After 25 years defending the colours of the best team in the world, the difficult day has arrived when I say goodbye to the institution that has given me so much,” Casillas said in what could be his final appearance at the Santiago Bernabeu.

“Thanks, a thousand thanks, I will never forget you. Wherever I go I will continue shouting ‘Hala Madrid!’.”

Casillas joined Madrid’s youth academy at age 9 before debuting for its first team in 1999. He won 19 trophies for Madrid, including three Champions League titles and five Spanish league crowns, while also captaining Spain to the 2010 World Cup and two European championships.

Avoiding any mention of Madrid President Florentino Perez or the drawn-out negotiations over the past week to complete his transfer, Casillas said his reasons for leaving were based on the interest shown by Porto.

“I am going to Porto for two reasons,” he said. “The first is the excitement that the coach and the president of the Portuguese club have expressed and, second, because of the messages of support I have received from their fans during these days. They have won me over and their interest has made me very happy. ”

Neither club has released the financial details of the deal, but Spanish media report Madrid is paying for part of Casillas’ salary that was due to him over the final two seasons of his contract with the Spanish side.

AMMAN — The Kingdom’s U-19 football team is gearing up for Asian Football Association (AFC) U-19 qualifiers kicking off October 2.

The squad was drawn in Group E alongside host Iran, Kuwait and Nepal in qualifiers which involve team from across the continent with group winners as well as best second-placed teams booking a slot to the AFC U-19 Championship set for Bahrain in 2016.  The top-four sides of the U-19 Championship advance to the FIFA U-20 World Cup.

Jordan’s squad regrouped earlier in the year as coaches described the draw as “tough”, but said the team will spare no effort to be ready for the qualifiers. Preparations were hampered by students’ examinations and head coach Islam Diyabat said training will continue before the final line-up is announced. 

The team will have a training camp following the Eid and prepare to play Oman on August 21 and 23, Lebanon on September 10 and the UAE on September 18 and 20, and the team will have a final camp in the UAE.

“All these friendlies will help boost the competitive edge and point out to any gaps before heading into our final training camp,” Diyabat noted as the team played a series of friendlies against local clubs over the past two weeks.

South Korea, who beat Iraq in the 2012 final, has won the U-19 championship a record 12 times since it started in 1959. Qatar won the last edition in 2014.

The seeding for the draw was based on the rankings from the AFC U-19 Championship 2014. A total of 43 member associations including Bahrain will compete in the qualifiers divided into two zones — the West Zone, which has 25 teams, and the East Zone with 18 teams. Ten group winners and five best second-placed teams will qualify for the finals while hosts Bahrain received an automatic qualification (total 16 teams). The qualifiers will be held from September 28 to October 6.

If Bahrain finish top of their qualifying group or one of the five second best-placed teams, the next (6th) second placed team will qualify for the final competition.

CHARLOTTE, North Carolina — Point guard Jeremy Lin is in search of some stability with Charlotte Hornets.

Lin said he has no regrets about leaving New York Knicks after the 2012 season to sign with Houston Rockets during his introductory press conference Monday. But the 26-year-old, one-year sensation made it pretty clear he’s eager to find the right fit.

Three teams removed from “Linsanity” fame, Lin believes he may have found it with Hornets.

Lin said he walked away excited after an in-depth conversation with Hornets coach Steve Clifford about how the team plans to use him — talks that the five-year NBA veteran said were few and far between with previous organisations.

“Just having that open line of communication early and being proactive about it was very big for me,” said Lin, who signed a two-year, $4.37 million contract last week.

The 1.9 metre Lin said he believes Clifford will give him an opportunity to do the things he did in the second half of the 2011-12 season with the New York Knicks, where he turned from a waiver-wire pickup to a late season phenomenon with a knack for big shots and solid production, averaging 14.4 points per game.

Lin left New York to sign a three-year, $25 million with Houston after that season, but his playing time and production decreased during his two seasons with the Rockets and was later traded to Los Angeles Lakers.

He never quite fit in there, either.

“I want to get back to what makes me what I am as a player, which is being aggressive, being on the attack and always charging toward the rim,” Lin said. “I think that will help create easier shots for this team.”

That’s what Clifford is counting on.

Hornets were last in the NBA in three-point shooting in 2014-15 and the team has made three pre-draft trades with that in mind.

Lin also fills that need.

“One, Jeremy has the ability to make the three, but two, he is a playmaker and has the ability to create offense for himself and his teammates,” Clifford said.

Lin is also excited about the idea of playing for Hornets and living in Charlotte, one of his favourite NBA cities and one he refers to as the East Coast version of his hometown Palo Alto, California.

Lin said the “Linsanity” era “feels like a decade ago” and he’s a much improved player now.

He remembers hearing plenty of criticism for his lack of defence, tendency for turnovers, poor shooting and inability to drive left. Despite reduced playing time in Houston and Los Angeles, he believes he’s shown improvement in those areas.

“I do believe I am a more refined player, a more all-around player,” Lin said. “I do think the work I have put in has made me better. I just don’t think I have had the same fit or opportunity.”

That could change in Charlotte where he’ll work as the second-team point guard behind Kemba Walker and possibly see some action at the two-guard spot, Clifford said.

“I don’t know what my limit is or how could I can be, but my goal is to find out,” Lin said.

Said Clifford: “He’s hungry to continue to improve. As you know that is not always the case in any pro league. So I’m confident he will continue to get better.”

Hornets didn’t make the play-offs last year.

Lin sees that changing next season following the additions of Nicolas Batum, Spencer Hawes and Jeremy Lamb this offseason via trades, and the selection of Frank Kaminsky from Wisconsin in the NBA draft.

“We want to make the play-offs and we don’t just want to sneak in at the eighth spot,” Lin said.

AMMAN — Jordan’s U-16 football team has started the final countdown to the 5th West Asian Championship kicking off in Amman on July 29 with Iran, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Iraq, Palestine and Jordan competing for the title.

The Kingdom’s team is undergoing a heavy training regimen although some technical issues seem to have made its task more difficult. Head coach Eric Deletang took time off this month with the championship now only two weeks away as coach Abdullah Qitati tried to best prepare the team’s fitness and competitive sides. 

“We hope the officials will succeed in securing serious friendlies as they are vital for our upcoming agenda,” Qitati was quoted as saying after the team only played two friendlies against Palestine, whom they beat 2-0 after losing the first match 3-2. 

Following the event, the U-16 team hopes finalising some friendlies against its Saudi Arabian and Syrian counterparts that will put finishing touches on preparations as it get set for Group B qualifiers for the 2016 AFC U-16 Asian Championship where Jordan will play alongside Nepal, Oman and Kyrgyzstan from September 12-20 in Kyrgyzstan.

India will host the 2016 AFC U-16 championship with a total of 45 nations including the host participating in the qualifiers, and the draw seeding based on the rankings from the last edition in 2014 won by North Korea . The 45 nations were divided into two qualifying zones — West Zone with 24 teams and East Zone with 21 teams. Eleven group winners and four best second-placed teams will qualify for the finals, with hosts India receiving an automatic qualification (total 16 teams). In case India finishes top of their qualifying group or among the four best second-placed teams, the next (5th) second best placed nation will qualify for the final competition.

Jordan was eliminated from the 2014 AFC U-16 qualifiers held in Amman after finishing last in Group D. Jordan lost to Afghanistan and Saudi Arabia 2-1, and drew 4-4 with Syria.