FIFA lifts suspension of Iraq

 "The government of Iraq has finally accepted to withdraw the presidential decree," FIFA President Joseph Blatter said in Australia on Thursday. "This has been lifted now and the game will be played in Brisbane."

   The world football supremo was speaking at the Sydney Opera House at the opening ceremony of the 58th FIFA Congress.

 The decision was announced just five hours before the expiry of a deadline he had set for the suspension of Iraq from FIFA.

 Cancelling Sunday's match with the Asian champions would have cost Football Federation Australia (FFA) an estimated 3 million Australian dollars (2.8 million US dollars) in lost gate receipts.

 The compensation for Australia would have been an easier passage to the 2010 finals in South Africa.

 FIFA imposed the suspension on Monday after the Iraqi government announced last week it was disbanding the country's National Olympic Committee.

 FIFA said earlier it had received a letter Wednesday from the general secretariat for the council of ministers of Iraq confirming that the IFA had been "excluded" from the decree.

 "This letter is a positive step, however it does not fully answer all of FIFA's concerns about the governmental attempts to control the Iraqi federations and the Iraqi National Olympic Committee," FIFA had said in a statement.

 As a result, FIFA decided to lift the suspension "on a purely provisional and conditional basis," it said.

 FIFA said it would invite a delegation of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), the IFA and representatives of the Iraqi government to Zurich as soon as possible to clarify all outstanding issues

   It will continue to coordinate its measures relating to the IFA with the International Olympic Committee's efforts "to ensure that the Olympic charter is applied to the entire Iraqi Olympic and sporting movement," it added.

DPA