--- description: It would exacerbate the 'deepening' crisis affecting soccer's global governing body, he says title: Don't Postpone FIFA Election, Prince Ali Says image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2429d76f4b78d07a/69886827cd1bba2d476fd9fb/rts3m5b.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Sports](/section/sports/) ## Sports Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Soccer](/tag/soccer/) ## Soccer Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Jordan's Prince Ali Says FIFA Should Not Postpone Its Presidential Election by [Rishi Iyengar](/author/rishi-iyengar/) ## Rishi Iyengar Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Oct 14, 2015 9:04 AM CUT  Jordanian Prince Ali bin Al Hussein (C) attends the 2018 World Cup qualifying soccer match between Jordan and Australia at the Amman International Stadium in Amman, Jordan October 8, 2015. Jordanian Prince Ali bin Al Hussein (C) attends the 2018 World Cup qualifying soccer match between Jordan and Australia at the Amman International Stadium in Amman, Jordan October 8, 2015.Muhammad Hamed—Reuters by [Rishi Iyengar](/author/rishi-iyengar/) ## Rishi Iyengar Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Oct 14, 2015 9:04 AM CUT FIFA presidential candidate Prince Ali bin al-Hussein has [warned](http://www.bbc.com/sport/0/football/34525079 "undefined") that delaying the upcoming leadership election would “create further instability” in soccer’s global governing body and further diminish its credibility. “It would tell the world that lessons haven’t been learned, that the same backroom deals that have discredited FIFA in the first place continue,” Ali said, according to the BBC. The Jordanian royal is vying to replace beleaguered current President Sepp Blatter, who was [suspended](http://time.com/4066068/sepp-blatter-fifa-suspended/ "undefined") last week along with the organization’s general secretary Jerome Valcke and European football head Michel Platini — a potential opponent to Ali in next year’s election. Blatter has been accused of misusing FIFA funds to make a $2 million payment to Platini — charges both men strenuously deny — in the middle of a widespread corruption scandal that has seen several top soccer officials indicted for bribery and fraud. FIFA’s executive committee will hold an emergency meeting on Oct. 20 to discuss the timing of the election, currently slated for Feb. 2016 after Blatter [resigned](http://time.com/3905860/sepp-blatter-fifa-president-resigns/ "undefined") from the presidency in June this year. The 79-year-old Swiss has said he will not officially step down before that election takes place, and is appealing his 90-day suspension along with Platini. Ali, meanwhile, said pushing the election back would “postpone needed change” within the organization. “With FIFA’s crisis deepening, the organisation needs to move beyond interim leadership and elect an accountable president,” he added. \[[_BBC_](http://www.bbc.com/sport/0/football/34525079 "undefined")\] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4072830/prince-ali-fifa-election-postpone-sepp-blatter/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4072830/prince-ali-fifa-election-postpone-sepp-blatter/"},"headline":"Jordan's Prince Ali Says FIFA Should Not Postpone Its Presidential Election","datePublished":"2015-10-14T09:04:05.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T11:46:41.338Z","description":"It would exacerbate the organization's 'deepening' crisis, he says","url":"https://time.com/4072830/prince-ali-fifa-election-postpone-sepp-blatter/","keywords":["Soccer","corruption","Scandal","Election","President","Jordan","FIFA","Sepp Blatter"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2429d76f4b78d07a/69886827cd1bba2d476fd9fb/rts3m5b.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Rishi Iyengar","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/rishi-iyengar/"}],"articleSection":"Sports","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2429d76f4b78d07a/69886827cd1bba2d476fd9fb/rts3m5b.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Jordanian Prince Ali bin Al Hussein attends the 2018 World Cup qualifying soccer match between Jordan and Australia in Amman","caption":"Jordanian Prince Ali bin Al Hussein attends the 2018 World Cup qualifying soccer match between Jordan and Australia in Amman","creditText":"Muhammad Hamed—Reuters","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/sports/","name":"Sports"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/soccer/","name":"Soccer"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4072830/prince-ali-fifa-election-postpone-sepp-blatter/","name":"Jordan's Prince Ali Says FIFA Should Not Postpone Its Presidential Election"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Sepp Blatter Suspended Amid Criminal Investigation","description":"FIFA President Sepp Blatter has been provisionally suspended for 90 days as the FIFA corruption scandal drags on.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/vOFDruYg/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2015-10-08T14:28:37.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/vOFDruYg.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/4072830/prince-ali-fifa-election-postpone-sepp-blatter/","duration":"PT1M20S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/4072830/prince-ali-fifa-election-postpone-sepp-blatter/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```