CAF election

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Hayatou's longevity is driving those who believe that Ahmad should be the next president
The Confederation of African Football (Caf) has only ever had five presidents in its 60-year history and the last time a new leader was appointed was way back in 1988.
Thursday's election in Ethiopia's capital, Addis Ababa, could herald a change, but long-time incumbent, Cameroon's Issa Hayatou, is not giving up without a fight.
Hayatou, in charge for nearly three decades, has often been re-elected unopposed. On the two occasions when he did face a challenge, he won with landslides amongst the electorate of presidents of Africa's football associations.
In 2000, he beat Angola's Armando Machado by 47-4 votes and four years later he defeated Ismail Bhamjee of Botswana by 46-6 votes.
As he seeks an eighth term on Thursday, taking on Madagascar FA head Ahmad Ahmad, Hayatou knows that victory this time around will not come nearly as easily.
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Ahmad admits he is only standing after being persuaded by at least 15 FA presidents to run
Whether it is reality or bluster, Ahmad says that he has been pledged more than 30 votes, which would comfortably take him over the line.
His platform of administrative reform, financial transparency and a potential reorganisation of Caf competitions may be popular. But as the Malagasy freely admits what people say and what they actually do are often two very different things.
Yet should Ahmad shock many by winning, the roots of his success will be able to be traced back to February 2016 when the Fifa elections took place.
At that time, Caf publicly stated that it was supporting Fifa presidential candidate, and front-runner, Sheikh Salman of Bahrain and instructed all of Africa to do so as well.
So when Swiss-Italian Gianni Infantino was the surprise winner, it left Caf exposed.
Caf former presidents
Abdel Aziz Abdallah Salem (1957-1958)
Abdel Aziz Moustafa (1958-1968)
Abdel Halim Muhammad (1968-1972)
Yidnekatchew Tessema (1972-1987)
Abdel Halim Muhammad (1987-1988)
Issa Hayatou (1988-present)
"It's one of the arguments that pushed me to go for this election," Ahmad told me on Tuesday.
Insiders say the leadership of both Fifa and Caf have been pulling in different directions ever since.
This was perhaps best illustrated by Infantino attending a birthday party for Zimbabwe FA president Phillip Chiyangwa in Harare last month. An event which Caf had described, for various reasons, as an "attempt to destabilise" African football's ruling body.
Chiywangwa is the campaign manager for Ahmad, so furthering the belief of those who claim that Fifa also wants change.
What is also instructive is the paucity of African federation presidents who have been prepared to speak out publicly on Hayatou's behalf.
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Gianni Infantino is seen as supporting change in Caf
Over the last month or so, the BBC has heard plenty from those who say they will be voting for Ahmad.
Yet trying to find balance in our coverage has been tricky.
Just two men, the FA presidents of Comoros and Guinea-Bissau, have been prepared to offer public support for the Cameroonian. This appears at odds with the belief that Hayatou is guaranteed another term that would extend his reign past 30 years.
"There is no one among us who can lead Caf better than Hayatou right now," Guinea-Bissau Football Federation president Nascimento Irenio told the BBC on Tuesday.
"You cannot compare the value that exists in this man as a leader with any other person in [African] football."
Nonetheless, Hayatou's longevity is driving those who believe that Ahmad should be the next president.
"It is clear that the winds of change are blowing in Africa," says Liberia FA president Musa Bility.
"We want to move forward to a new development and a new generation of leaders. This is not a campaign in which we are going to get involved in mud-slinging and bad-mouthing.