Is the UEFA president unduly interfering in the Icelandic elections? Aleksander Čeferin gives vocal support to candidate Guðni Bergsson to Icelandic media while insinuating that Iceland will struggle within UEFA if Bergsson’s opponent is elected.
By Pål Ødegård and Håvard Melnæs
On Saturday 9 February the annual assembly of the Icelandic Football Federation will among other issues decide who will be the president for the next two year term.
There are two candidates: sitting president Guðni Bergsson, the former Tottenham Hotspur and Bolton Wanderers player, who has been president since 2017 when Geir Thorsteinsson decided to step down after 10 years as president. But now Thorsteinsson has decided to run again.
At a crucial time ahead of the elections, Guðni Bergsson got the most important man in European football, Aleksander Čeferin, on his side.
In an interview with TV2’s Sports Magazine, Čeferin praised Bergsson:
"I have to say, however, that I have a great respect for Guðni Bergsson. I believe he is a great leader, and the Icelandic federation has never had such good relations with the governing body UEFA as it has now, with Guðni as president."
When asked if this means that these relations during Geir Thorsteinsson’s time weren’t that good, the Slovenian replied:
“For me it is hard to say if it was bad or not, I don’t want to judge Thorsteinsson because I don’t know him well, but the fact is that now the relations are great, I doubt if it can be any better with another so...
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