Bold Changes Ahead: Li

New FAS head has a multi-pronged approach, with emphasis on youth

- Melvyn Teoh

Forrest Li was installed as the new Football Association of Singapore (FAS) president until 2029 on April 28.

At the FAS extraordinary congress at the Raffles Town Club, Li's slate that formed the council included lawyer and current BG Tampines Rovers chairman Desmond Ong as the deputy president.

There are also four vice-presidents: Bill Ng, founder of private equity firm Financial Frontiers and chairman of Hougang United and Tiong Bahru FC; national captain Hariss Harun; Lion City Sailors general manager Tan Li Yu; and Sean Bai, chief of staff at Burnley, who have recently been promoted to the English Premier League.

Three council members were also elected en bloc with the rest of the slate by 29 of the 37 ordinary members - Bruce Liang, head of strategic projects at Sea Group and SeaMoney and executive director of the Sailors; Arivan Shanmugaratnam, a lead manager at Tasek Academy and Social Services; and Roy Quek, chairman of St Joseph's Institution International.

In his first speech as president, Li highlighted a multi-pronged approach to "improve things at grassroots and professional levels" within Singapore football.

He said: "We will focus on building up the fundamentals of a healthy football ecosystem in five areas: infrastructure, youth development, partnerships, league competitiveness and administrative effectiveness.