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Sheikh Salman’s position at the head of FIFA betting strengthens

| 25.02.2016

Gianni Infantino may have the backing of the likes of the FA, the SFA and the Spanish governing body, but that hasn’t stopped him being usurped in the betting to land the FIFA Presidency.

Ahead of the crucial vote in Zurich on Friday, the Swiss finds himself out at 7/4 to land the top job at the sport’s governing body.

The man primed to get the nod is Sheikh Salman bin Ebrahim al-Khalifa who is a strong 8/15 to come out on top this week.

Currently head of the Asian Football Confederation, Sheikh Salman has been backed in from 3/1 as the countdown to the big vote continues.

The 50-year-old, who was apparently levered into his current role at the AFC by outgoing FIFA chief Sepp Blatter, has faced with many questions throughout his campaign.

Claims of human rights abuse and of using money intended to be used on developing football in Bahrain on his election run have dogged Salman.

Nevertheless, it appears that he has the upper hand when it comes to the race for the job, with Infantino looking the only man who can stop him taking control.

The remaining three candidates, Prince Ali bin Al-Hussein (10/1), Tokyo Sexwale (40/1) and Jerome Champagne (66/1) look to have little chance in usurping the market leaders, despite the former being as short as evens before Christmas.

Many of Europe’s biggest clubs have spoken up for Infantino as the footballing world look to see a clean up at Fifa after a turbulent few years.

However, while he may have the backing of some of football’s elite, the betting suggests he will be pipped to the post by Sheikh Salman.

All odds and markets correct as of the date of publishing.

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Author

Ben Stones

Ladbrokes News’ equine expert, Ben likes nothing more than studying the form to pick out a winner or two for our readers. A Journalism and Media Studies graduate from the University of Winchester, Ben has previously written for a number of football and racing blogs and websites, as well as contributing to the sports pages of his home-town newspaper.