David Chung (football executive)

David Chung OBE (born Chung Kim Hiong: July 13, 1962 in Malaysia^[1]) is a Malaysian-Papua New Guinean sports official, and the current President of the Oceania Football Confederation. He is a member of the FIFA Council.

Biography

He moved from Malaysia to Papua New Guinea in 1985, and became a naturalised citizen of his adoptive country. Though "initially involved" in rugby league, he subsequently became an association football player, coach and referee, and then a senior official. While "administering football" in the New Guinea Highlands, he "helped secure outside funding as well as contribute personal finance towards youth development programmes". He became president of the Papua New Guinea Football Association in 2004, and then the senior vice-president of the Oceania Football Confederation -under OFC president Reynald Temarii of Tahiti- in 2007. When Temarii was suspended by FIFA Ethics Committee on allegations of corruption in November 2010,^[2] Chung was elevated to the position of acting president, with New Zealand's Fred de Jong as his senior vice-president.^[1][3] In January 2011, he was elected to the presidency of the OFC unopposed, for a four-year term.^[4]

The OFC credits him with launching Papua New Guinea's "first ever semi-professional football competition in 2006", the Papua New Guinea National Soccer League, as well as with boosting grassroots football, supporting women's football and overseeing "a series of infrastructure projects including a national football academy in Lae and regional technical centre in Kimbe with plans in place to build an additional regional technical centre in Port Moresby beginning 2011".^[1]

He was named as a recipient of the Order of the British Empire in the Queen's Birthday Honours list in July 2012.^[5]

References