The US Treasury Department has imposed sanctions on the president of the Sudanese club Al-Hilal Ashraf Sayed Ahmed Cardinal for his involvement in corruption activities in South Sudan, the ministry said in a statement.
Al-Hilal fans held the cardinal responsible for the deterioration of the team's level and their exit from the quarter-finals of the African Confederation Championship against Tunisia's Etoile Sahel on April 23rd.
The day after the loss, Al Hilal officially announced the resignation of the cardinal from his post in a post through the official account on the "Facebook", but has not elected a replacement so far.
Cardinal has been president of Al Hilal since July 2014 after being elected president for three years, following the resignation of former club president Amin Al-Bareer.
The Sudanese billionaire was re-elected on July 2017 for four years, after the adoption of the new sports law in Sudan, which increased the mandate of the heads of clubs for four years instead of three.