The Football Association of Thailand (FAT) claimed the Asian Football Confederation’s Member Association of the Year Diamond Award for the second consecutive year at the annual gala of the regional body in Saudi Arabia on Thursday night.
FAT president Nualphan Lamsam was in Riyadh to receive the award as Thailand became the first nation to win the honour two years in a row.
It was another memorable milestone for the Thai governing body, which last year won the prestigious honour for the first time in the 30-year history of the award in Seoul, South Korea.
The other two national governing bodies nominated for the award were the Chinese and Vietnamese football federations.
The prestigious honour reflected FAT’s successes on and off the pitch in the past year, including the performance at both club and international levels, management standards and hosting of international tournaments.
The Member Association of the Year Award is divided into four tiers based on ranking groups: Platinum (1-12), Diamond (13-24), Gold (25-36) and Ruby (37-47).
Thailand has also been selected as the host of the AFC Annual Awards 2026, underscoring the nation’s growing reputation and capability to stage international sporting events.
Players honoured
Saudi Arabia captain Salem Al-Dawsari was named Asia’s Player of the Year for a second time and Japan’s Hana Takahashi won the women’s award.
The 34-year-old winger Al-Dawsari finished as top scorer in last season’s AFC Champions League with 10 goals as he helped Al-Hilal reach the semi-finals of the continent’s top club competition.
Al-Dawsari, who also scooped the award in 2022, said: “This achievement is not the end of the road, but rather the beginning of greater ambitions.”
Skippered by Al-Dawsari, Saudi Arabia this week sealed their place at next year’s World Cup in North America.
Urawa Reds defender Takahashi, 25, played a pivotal role for club and country in recent months. The goal-scoring defender helped Urawa win a domestic cup in Japan. bangkok post/afp