South Africa billionaire Motsepe takes charge of CAF on Friday

South African mining magnate Patrice Motsepe will take charge of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) as its President on Friday.

The 59-year-old is expected to be acclaimed as the new boss of the continent's governing body after FIFA president Gianni Infantino brokered a deal to anoint the South African billionaire.

The last impediment to his coronation, which will come at the CAF Congress in Rabat on Friday, was removed on Monday when the Court of Arbitration for Sport upheld a ban on CAF President Ahmad Ahmad for corruption, although reducing his suspension from five to two years.

Ahmad was initially banned in November, opening the field for new leaders, with Motsepe proving a surprise candidate.

FIFA president Gianni Infantino brokered a deal to give politically connected South African billionaire Patrice Motsepe a clear run to lead the African soccer confederation after the other three contenders withdrew over the weekend and backed Motsepe.

FIFA said the agreement for candidates Augustin Senghor of Senegal, Jacques Anouma of Ivory Coast and Ahmed Yahya of Mauritania to withdraw from the upcoming election — and unite behind Motsepe — came after meetings in Rabat, Morocco, last week. The deal was confirmed at another meeting on Saturday in Mauritania, FIFA said.

On that day, all four men appeared alongside Infantino at a ceremony celebrating “African unity” in the Mauritanian capital Nouakchott, and Infantino said it was the desire of all African soccer federations “to stop the divisions and get united.”

FIFA said Motsepe would lead the Confederation of African Football with “a common program" that takes from the manifestos of all four men.