S'pore ex-footballer Baihakki Khaizan resigns from FAS

Retired Singapore footballer Baihakki Khaizan has resigned from the Football Association of Singapore (FAS) as the head of planning for the technical division office.

In a Facebook post on Sep. 16, Baihakki announced his resignation "with humility and respect".

"I am deeply grateful for everyone who believed in these ideas and helped turn them into reality. To my colleagues, thank you for your trust, friendship and teamwork," he added.

Baihakki is a prominent figure in Singapore football, having started his professional career at the age of 19.

He made his debut for the Singapore National Team in 2003. Over the course of his professional career, Baihakki represented Singapore 143 times, earning him a spot in the FIFA Century Club.

In 2021, Baihakki retired from the sport and eventually joined FAS as the lead for special projects in 2022.

Baihakki joined FAS as a lead for special projects in February 2022 and remained in this role until March 2023, before becoming the head of planning in the technical division office for the next two years and seven months.

"This may be the end of a chapter, but the mission to serve the game will always continue."

Mothership has reached out to FAS for their comment.

Reason

Baihakki's resignation comes weeks after his son was dropped from the Singapore U-17 team.

Mika Bazil Baihakki, a national youth player, was recently told he was dropped from the national U-17 team as he could not travel with the team for an upcoming AFC U-17 tournament in November.

Mika's mother, former actress Norfasarie Mohd Yahya, put up a post on Facebook explaining that Mika informed management that he had to remain in Singapore during the September holidays to attend extra lessons and prepare for his N-level exams, which start on Sept. 15.

In response to Mothership's queries, FAS said they had held a briefing in May at Jalan Besar Stadium for all Singapore-based U17 shortlisted players, highlighting the main target for the year, the AFC U17 qualifiers.

FAS said that the players in attendance were "apprised of the training camps and tournaments lined up prior to November".

However, according to The Straits Times, they understand that this incident was not a key factor in his resignation.

Top photos Baihakki Khaizan/Facebook