Japan Football Association (JFA) vice president Junji Ogura was elected Wednesday to a four-year term as an Asian representative on soccer's world governing body FIFA's Executive Committee.
At an Asian Football Conference (AFC) Congress vote in Kuala Lumpur, Ogura became only the third Japanese representative to hold a position in the organization and the first since 1969.
In a three-way poll in the final round of balloting, Ogura and Thailand's Worawi Makudi each won 25 votes to edge out Yusef Al Serkal of the United Arab Emirates, who received 23 votes.
"The unity and support of east Asian soccer federations was the reason behind my victory today. The result is a recognition of the success of the World Cup and we won votes because of that," said Ogura, who served as tournament director for JAWOC.