Even though Samuel Eto'o, whose management of the Cameroonian Football Federation (Fecafoot) often attracts the spotlight when it comes to the daily lives of African federations, we must respect his Algerian counterparts for a certain sense of spectacle. In Algiers, at the facilities of the Algerian Football Federation (FAF), in the Dely Ibrahim district, the spectacle is almost permanent.
The most ejectable chair in Africa
We think, after the resignation of Djahid Zefizef on July 16th – three days after not being elected to the Executive Committee of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) against the Libyan Abdul Hakim Al-Shalmani – that the overwhelming heat that hit the country capital would limit any risk of further overheating within the body.
The list of official candidates will be announced on August 15th
But this was to ignore the now proverbial instability of a federation where the last two presidents, Djahid Zefizef and Charaf-Eddine Amara before him, were only protected for one year – and even a little less during the second – while “they had been elected to mandate four years. On Tuesday, July 25, when Zefizef's resignation had just been officially registered, Azeddine Arab, vice-president of the FAF, normally responsible for acting on an interim basis and preparing a future elective general assembly, was asked to leave the most ejectable chair from Africa. .
In fact, according to Algerian law, members of the federal cabinet are prohibited from holding multiple positions, which was the case with the Arabs. The latter was replaced by Mounir Debbichi, secretary general of the Federation, although he left the position, as did the other members of the federal cabinet division.
Debbichi, who has not always been unanimous as secretary general, will work closely with Ali Malek, president of the appointments committee, who will be responsible for verifying that candidates meet the requirements of the FAF statutes to be eligible; The date of September 4th was decided on July 27th, during a meeting of the electoral commission.
“We have to be compatible with the government”
To date, no candidate has officially declared themselves, but several names have already been circulated, while competitors have from July 30th to August 13th to declare themselves (the list of official candidates will be known on August 15th, after studying the individual files). .
It's not even worth hoping to be elected if you're not in the good books of high political circles.
However, whoever wants to sit for four years – at least in theory – in the presidential chair will have to fulfill a requirement that, curiously, is not included in the body's statutes: that of enjoying political power. Algeria is far from an exception in Africa, but the facts are there. “It’s not even worth hoping to be elected if you’re not in the good books of high political circles. We have to be compatible with the government, if you know what I mean…”, confirms a good expert on the mysteries of Algerian football.
A former candidate for minister?
A priori, this unwritten rule does not bode well for Raouf Salim Bernaoui, 47 years old, former Minister of Youth and Sports (from April 2019 to January 2020). He the same applies to Walid Saadi, former member of the Federal Cabinet of the FAF, considered close to Mohamed Raouraoua, the emblematic former president of the Federation (2002-2006 and 2009-2017). “This is seen as a possibility of seeing Raouraoua leading the FAF from behind the scenes. And some, whether in the world of football or politics, reject these hypotheses. But that won't stop Saadi from running if he so chooses. »
Among the other possible candidates, Abdelhakim Serrar. The former Argentine international was president of ES Sétif for a long time, one of the best clubs in the country, which has just been purchased by Sonelgaz, the national electricity and gas company. Serrar had already been a candidate in 2021 against Zefizef.
Until his departure attributed to the interim presidency, Azeddine Arab, who also led ES Sétif, was seen as a very presentable potential candidate.
There are also rumors that Charaf-Eddine Amara would be tempted to return to business. The CEO of Madar Holding, a national tobacco and matches company, has his supporters within the government. But the fragility of his record during his first spell at the helm of the FAF, notably marked by an elimination in the first round of CAN 2022 and during the qualifiers for the World Cup in Qatar, in March 2022, cannot really be discussed. your favor.
A set with Belmadi
“The coach, Djamel Belmadi, will give his opinion. And whoever is in power wants the team between the FAF president and the coach to work well and be united, which was not the case with Amara. Algeria won the 2019 African Cup of Nations (CAN) in Egypt with Djamel Belmadi on the Fennecs bench, as well as Kheireddine Zetchi, who appointed him a year earlier. And the two men got along wonderfully.
A detail that did not go unnoticed by the Algerian executive, who bets heavily on the results of the national team, qualified for the next CAN in Côte d'Ivoire (January 13 to February 11, 2024) and participated in the World Cup qualifiers. 2026, which was drawn in November next.
