FIFA suspends India's FA because of 'undue influence from third parties,' strips country of U17 Women's World Cup

By Ben Morse, CNN

Updated 1151 GMT (1951 HKT) August 16, 2022

The Football House, headquarters of the All India Football Federation, in New Delhi on May 7, 2010.

(CNN)FIFA has suspended India's football association because of «undue influence from third parties,» amid concerns over legal interference after India's Supreme Court appointed a three-member committee to take over the day-to-day operations of the federation.

FIFA stated in a press release Tuesday that the «third party» involvement in India's football association, the All India Football Federataion (AIFF), went against their statues, adding that the suspension would be lifted if the Supreme Court's ruling is repealed and «the AIFF administration regains full control of the AIFF's daily affairs.» As part of the move, FIFA has also stripped India's hosting of the under-17 Women's World Cup.The ruling from football's governing body comes after India's Supreme Court appointed the committee to take over the «day to day governance» of the AIFF in May after its president, Praful Patel, failed to hold elections originally scheduled for December 2020. In June, FIFA held a joint trip to India with the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) where it «held constructive discussions with local stakeholders regarding the situation at the AIFF.» Read More«The meetings concluded that the next steps should be the ratification of the AIFF Statutes in line with FIFA/AFC principles of good governance and the holding of an electoral congress to choose the next AIFF leadership. This would be based on a timeline agreed by AIFF stakeholders,» FIFA said.However, just over two months after the joint trip, FIFA announced the suspension of the AIFF.«The Bureau of the FIFA Council has