SEOUL, South Korea — Four years after narrowly losing his bid to join the FIFA executive committee, Sheikh Salman Bin Ibrahim Al-Khalifa is running for president of the Asian Football Confederation and looking to mend the organization’s relationship with FIFA.

Salman, the head of the Bahrain Football Association, will likely be up against Yousef Al-Serkal of the United Arab Emirates and acting-president Zhang Jilong of China in May.

In 2009, Salman came within two votes of defeating Mohamed Bin Hammam for a seat on the FIFA executive committee. The election campaign became a bitter battle that widened divisions in Asia, and deepened when Bin Hammam was suspended and eventually banned for life by FIFA amid allegations of financial irregularities.

Salman said: “The mistrust between FIFA and AFC has to be repaired.” — AFP