Didier Drogba failed to become president of the Football Federation of Ivory Coast (FIF) as Yacine Idriss Diallo won Saturday’s long-delayed election.
Former Chelsea striker Drogba, who was inducted into the Premier League Hall of Fame this week, was ousted by just under a fifth of the vote in the first round.
In the second round, Diallo, a businessman and current FIF Executive Member, ousted former FIF Vice-President Sory Diabaté by a vote of 63 to 61.
Saturday’s elections in the political capital Yamoussoukro had been postponed several times since 2020, mainly because of ongoing problems with the eligibility of certain candidates, including Drogba.
After Fifa appointed a normalization committee to oversee Ivorian football, Drogba’s candidacy – initially rejected because he did not have the required number of official supporters – was eventually accepted.
Drogba played more than 100 times for the Elephants, including at the 2006 and 2010 World Cups, but was told in August 2020 that he could not run.
Following FIFA’s intervention, the 44-year-old – who won four Premier League titles, four FA Cups and the Champions League in two terms with Chelsea – kept his hopes of refereeing the game in the West African country alive.
But Ivory Coast’s all-time top scorer was eliminated in the first round by just 21 votes as Diallo (59 votes) and Diabaté (50 votes) made it through to the second round.
Drogba’s achievements and ambitious Côte d’Ivoire football development program had boosted his popularity and following his defeat, many of his supporters took to social media on Saturday to express their anger.
“The club presidents just killed Ivorian football by eliminating Didier Drogba,” said a user named Rosana225. “I hope the Ivorians don’t retaliate by boycotting Afcon 2023.”
Diallo has a four-year mandate and organizing the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations hosted by Ivory Coast will be his first major challenge.
Ivory Coast are two-time African champions, having won the Africa Cup of Nations in 1992 and 2015.
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