Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Manama: Bahrain Football Association President Shaikh Ali Bin Khalifa Al Khalifa has pledged to do what is necessary to ensure the the nation's clubs meet the necessary criteria to take part in the continent’s premier club competition, the AFC Champions League (ACL).
The President's statement comes after a four-man Special Mission Team from the AFC has completed its visit to help Bahrain professionalise its game further.
"Thank you very much for your time and efforts for this inspection,” said Al Khalifa. “It is a very significant moment for us now to implement the club licensing system with a revamp of our professional league structures.
“As it is the beginning stage to implement the licensing system, some clubs do not have a full understanding of it, and we hope your visit can help clubs understand the necessity of the licensing system and hopefully they can meet the timeline that we have set for 2014.
"From now on, due to the change of the Decision Method System for ACL Participation, it is important for Bahraini clubs to perform on and off the pitch. We must also stress to our national and club teams the importance of improving our ranking in the AFC Member Association Rankings as it will decide our slots in the AFC Champions League."
"After last year's SMT inspection, we have applied for the Kick Off development programme which is run by the AFC and it has helped us a lot to improve our clubs in certain areas. In addition, we have a plan to re-launch the professional league in the near future so that we can have a professional and competitive league platform to improve our football."
"As per your recommendation and advice, we will complete our jobs to meet the requirements for ACL participation and thank you again for your support during the inspection."
The SMT’s head, Steve Kim, said: “This time, as the Bahrain FA (BFA) didn't apply for participation in the ACL with a direct slot(s), we focused on the 'health check' of club licensing system here in Bahrain. As we observed, it is in the beginning stage and we managed to explain the importance of the licensing system to clubs.
"In particular, the clubs need to have more qualified expertise as per the club licensing criteria and it will be good for a local licensing manager to conduct some necessary regular education programmes for clubs so that the clubs can understand the necessity of the club licensing system.
"In addition, it is critical to complete the establishment of the necessary decision making bodies for club licensing related decisions. We hope that the Bahrain Football Association can comply with the deadline to submit the list of licensed clubs and we shall assist you as much as possible to complete the process within the set timeline.
"As the AFC has an expertise in assessing the professional leagues and clubs and providing solutions and suggestions for development, it will be more than happy to assist the Bahrain Football Association's new project for the re-launch of professional league. It will be a milestone for Bahraini football to move forward and we hope that we can play a to improve your professional league and clubs.”
Photo: BFA