Thai FA lashes out over 'attack' on chief Worawi
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The Football Association of Thailand has hit back at accusations of incompetence over the withdrawal of Croatia from the upcoming 43rd King's Cup tournament.
But the FA has insisted it will not sue the press for what it branded “inaccurate” reports in local media aimed at inciting hatred against controversial FA chief Worawi Makudi. The reports in question alleged the FA failed to send the Croatians a formal invitation letter.
The Croatian FA informed its Thai counterpart this week that it was unable to send a team for the Kingdom’s most prestigious international event, which runs from February 1-7 in Nakhon Ratchasima.
The Thai FA called a press conference yesterday at its headquarters and insisted that it had followed normal procedures in inviting Croatia and the other two countries, South Korea and North Korea, to compete in the annul event.
“North Korea and South Korea have already confirmed their participation. Croatia, though, sent us a formal letter informing us of their decision to pull the team from the competition. They explained the date of the tournament left them facing difficulty in assembling a squad as their players had club commitments, domestically and in Europe.
“The event was also not included on Fifa’s calendar. Nevertheless, the Croatians said they regretted the decision and promised to send a team if the opportunity arises in the future,” said Narinpong Jinapak, the Thai FA’s lawyer.
Narinpong warned that the FA would go to court should such “inaccurate” reporting of its actions occur again.
“We can confirm that we did everything right and in a formal manner regarding inviting the three teams, and we have evidence to support that. I ask for discretion in regard to some inaccurate reports from a certain media outlet that caused damage and incited public hatred towards Worawi.
“We don’t have a policy of suing [the media]… However, if a report that causes damage to the association ever occurs again, we will have no choice but to take legal action against the culprits.”
