Worawi Makudi ( th, วรวีร์ มะกูดี) (born 29 November 1951), also referred in the media as Bung Yee ( th, บังยี, ) is a Thai former football official. He was a member of the

FIFA Council The FIFA Council (formerly the FIFA Executive Committee) is an institution of FIFA (the governing body of association football, futsal and beach football). It is the main decision-making body of the organization in the intervals of FIFA Congress. ...

from 1997 to 2015. He served as the

Football Association of Thailand The Football Association of Thailand under Patronage of His Majesty the King ( th, สมาคมกีฬาฟุตบอลแห่งประเทศไทย ในพระบรมราชูปถัมภ์), or FA Thailand for s ...

's General Secretary from 1996 to 2007, before being elected president in 2007. In October 2015 Makudi was suspended by FIFA Ethics Committee from all football activities for 90 days. In February 2016 he was banned by FIFA Disciplinary Committee for three months after it was found that he had breached the previous ban. In October 2016 Makudi was banned by FIFA Ethics Committee for five years and fined 10,000 Swiss Francs for forgery and falsification.

Early life and career

Makudi is a member of the Thai Muslim minority. He attended Amnuay Silpa School, where he became interested in football and was recruited into the school team. He studied at the

Kuwait University Kuwait University ( ar, جامعة الكويت, abbreviated as Kuniv) is a public university located in Kuwait City, Kuwait. History Kuwait University (KU), (in Arabic: جامعة الكويت), was established in October 1966 under Act N. 29 ...

, financed by the government of Kuwait, and was selected to join the University's football team. Makudi served as the Football Association of Thailand Secretary-General from 1996 to 2007, before being elected president in 2007. He was a member of

from 1997 to 2015. Makudi has been chairman of Thai League club Nakhon Ratchasima F.C. since September 2021.

Corruption allegations

In May 2011,

Lord Triesman David Maxim Triesman, Baron Triesman (born 30 October 1943) is a British politician, merchant banker and former trade union leader. Triesman is a Labour member of the House of Lords. Triesman previously sat as a Labour peer until resigning th ...

gave evidence in the

British Parliament The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of Westminster, London. It alone possesses legislative suprem ...

that Makudi had demanded the TV rights to a friendly between England and the Thai national team in return for voting for England to host the 2018 FIFA World Cup. This led to an inquiry set up by the Football Association, where Triesman repeated the allegation of corruption by referring to his parliamentary evidence. Makudi then tried to sue Triesman for libel, claiming that the allegations were not true and that his reputation had been tarnished. However the case was dismissed on the grounds of

abuse of process An abuse of process is the unjustified or unreasonable use of legal proceedings or process to further a cause of action by an applicant or plaintiff in an action. It is a claim made by the respondent or defendant that the other party is misusing ...

, which was confirmed by a higher court.Owen Bowcott
Lord Triesman cannot be sued for libel by Thai official, court of appeal rules
'

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

26 February 2014

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Makudi, Worawi 1951 births Living people Worawi Makudi Worawi Makudi