FIFA official Makudi to stand for Asian leadership

PETALING JAYA, Malaysia (AP) — FIFA executive committee member Worawi Makudi is a candidate to replace disgraced Mohamed bin Hammam as Asian Football Confederation president.

Makudi says he\'s \"extremely honored to be proposed and nominated\" by the 11-nation regional body representing South East Asian football.

The group says Australia also backs the Thai official after attending Monday\'s meeting in Malaysia.

Makudi, a longtime bin Hammam ally, could face four rivals: interim AFC president Zhang Jilong of China, Bahrain\'s Sheikh Salman Bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa, Yousef Al Serkal of the United Arab Emirates, and Saudi Arabia\'s Hafez El Medlej.

The 46-member Asian confederation elects a president on May 2 in Kuala Lumpur to complete bin Hammam\'s mandate through to 2015.

The Qatari official resigned in December during a FIFA investigation into his management of AFC finances.