Danny Jordaan’s loss has suddenly become Almamy Kabele Camara’s gain ahead of the most feverish African regional elections in decades. The late decision by Jordaan, who led South Africa’s 2010 World Cup organisation and is one of the most recognisable faces in world football politics, to pull out of next week’s race for an African place on the all-powerful FIFA Council, has guaranteed a place for the Guinean without him having to make a move.

Camara can now attend next week’s elections in Addis Ababa in the knowledge that he has already bagged one of the seven African FIFA Council slots unopposed, leaving four of the other places to be put to the vote, with one autotomatically going to whoever is elected president of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) and another going to Lydia Nsekere of Burundi as the continent’s female representative.

Camara had been one of three candidates for two places in the Open category of the African elections, which also has categories for the continent’s various language groups. The withdrawals of both Jordaan and Chabur Goc Alei of South Sudan were unexplained, particularly as if either had stayed in the race, they too would been elected unopposed. The withdrawals were communicated to CAF and FIFA on Monday just hours before FIFA announced that the remaining 10 candidates in the race had all passed integrity checks.