CAIRO: Samir Zaher has been elected for a second successive term as the Egyptian Football Association (EFA) president. He eased to victory in the election after getting 87 votes out of 112. There was no real competition between Zaher and the other candidates. Former Zamalek president Kamal Darwish got 25 votes while Ashraf Shaker and Osama Khalil didn't get any. Zaher was at the risk of being removed from electoral lists after an Egyptian court said he wasn t qualified to nominate himself for the EFA s presidential seat due to alleged criminal convictions in the past. But upon his appeal, the ruling was suspended. The court is expected to deliver its final verdict in the coming few weeks. Zaher, who was elected as the EFA president in 2005, is widely appreciated for successfully generating income for Egyptian clubs and national teams. His predecessors did not regard that notion highly. The Egyptian League, which was often branded as "boring and lackluster, was well used by Zaher and the EFA s current board to generate revenues. Three years ago, the competition s broadcasting rights were sold to several TV networks for the first time in Egypt s football history. During Zaher s stint, Egypt won back-to-back Nations Cup titles in 2006 and 2008 and so far has been doing well World Cup qualifiers.
