Richard K. Lai will retain his seat as Guam Football Association President for another four years following a successful re-election during the organization’s 2016 Ordinary Congress held at the Fiesta Guam Resort Saturday.

Additionally, Pascual Artero and Joseph Cepeda also will continue as GFA’s vice presidents and George Lai keeps his spot in the Executive Committee. All four ran unopposed and received unanimous approval by the 12 of 13 member clubs present at the Congress.
　 　
“We’ve achieved so much in recent years and I look forward to collaborating with all stakeholders in continuing this wave of success,” said Richard K. Lai. “We have much more still to work toward, and as in previous terms, I will constantly seek opportunities for Guam’s soccer athletes, coaches, officials, and administrators to succeed – domestically and internationally. We will also continue to develop and maintain our facilities to bring in more events and competitions for our local community of supporters, business sponsors, and those visiting from abroad who follow Guam football.”

In addition to member clubs approving GFA’s financial statements and Congress minutes from 2014, club delegates also approved to grant Rovers FC with a provisional non-voting, associate member status. Rovers FC’s premier team most recently competed in the AFC Cup 2017 Play-Off Qualifiers in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, as the first-ever club from Guam to compete in an AFC tournament.

　

The club also maintains a strong Division 2 team in the Budweiser Soccer League, a women’s team in the Bud Light Women’s Soccer League and a handful of youth teams in the Triple J Auto Group Robbie Webber Youth Soccer League.

At the conclusion of the Congress, visiting AFC observer Purushottam Kattel presented Lai with an AFC pennant formally pledging continued support to Lai and GFA. Other VIP guests at the Congress included FIFA instructor Heather Reid from Australia, who was in Guam to conduct a FIFA Women’s Football Administration Course, and Ross Zapanta, General Secretary of the Northern Mariana Islands Football Association, among others.

　

GFA will engage in an Extraordinary Congress in Sept. 2017. The next Ordinary Congress will be held in 2018.