Football chief Madam Pang is caught in a clash between rival factions

After the formation of the Abhisit Vejjajiva government in 2008, Newin Chidchob stepped back from the political forefront and became an influential figure behind the Bhumjaithai Party. He then shifted his focus to football, investing in a team.

At the time, Chavarat Charnvirakul was the Minister of the Interior, which led to the Provincial Electricity Authority (PEA) board approving Newin’s acquisition of shares in PEA Football Club. The club was renamed "Buriram PEA", earning the nickname "Thunder Castle", and relocated from Ayutthaya to Buri Ram province in late 2009.

Notably, the PEA board then included Pol General Somyot "Big Odd" Poompanmuang, an assistant police chief with ties to the Bhumjaithai Party. 

At that time, PEA fans and Ayutthaya residents protested against Buri Ram politicians interfering in Thai football.

Despite opposition, Newin led Buriram PEA to a Thai League championship within three years, expanding its fanbase nationwide. In 2012, he acquired an additional 30% stake, gaining full control and rebranding the club as "Buriram United".

Kanoksak Pinsaeng, president of the Thailand Polo Association, introduced Newin to Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha of King Power, with whom he strategised to elevate "Big Odd" to the presidency of the Football Association of Thailand (FA Thailand).

This was a dream of Newin, who aimed to dominate Thai football. During the early years of building the Buriram football team, he had faced strong opposition from the established powers in the industry.

During the time Newin led Buri Ram United in the Thai League 1, Worawi "Bang Yi" Makudi, was still in charge of FA Thailand. Bang Yi was also an executive board member of the Pheu Thai Party during the Yingluck Shinawatra government and held a political position as a Thai trade representative.

Under Bang Yi's leadership, frequent conflicts arose between FA Thailand and Newin, which even extended to the football field, particularly between Buriram United and Muangthong United fans.

This tension was partly due to the fact that Rawi Lohtong, the owner of Muangthong United and Siam Sport Syndicate, was a business ally of Bang Yi.

Newin, aware that Bang Yi's faction had powerful media backing, launched an online media campaign using a new generation of team members to create content through new media, challenging Bang Yi and his allies.

During this time, Newin began using football strategies to drive politics, forming alliances with teams in both Thai League 1 and regional leagues.

In 2016, Newin and Vichai announced their support for "Big Odd", former police chief, to run for president of FA Thailand.

Coincidentally, Bang Yi was banned by FIFA from engaging in football activities and had other legal issues, preventing him from running for the top post.

As a result, Somyot won the election with overwhelming support, receiving 62 out of 68 votes.

 

The first thing Big Odd did after assuming the presidency was to tear up the contract between the association and Siam Sport, which was a legacy of Bang Yi.

In 2020, another election for the association president took place. Bang Yi tried to find a way to run again but faced many obstacles, so he supported Phinyo Niroj, a former FA Thailand vice president, to run instead.

As expected, Big Odd won easily, with 51 votes against 17 and 1 invalid vote.

The second successive victory of Big Odd reflected Newin's influence in securing the majority of votes, even though the first four years of "Big Odd's" presidency were not well received by Thai football fans.

In mid-2023, Newin realised that Big Odd would not last long, so he supported Nualphan "Madam Pang" Lamsam to run for the presidency of FA Thailand.

The reason Madam Pang was chosen was due to her strong connections, which led to full support from Pavin Bhirombhakdi, president of BG Pathum United, and Wilak Lohthong, president of Muangthong United.

As a result, in the election for president on February 8, 2024, Madam Pang won decisively, marking the beginning of a new era of unity in Thai football with two major factions: the Chidchob faction and the Lothong faction.

In the executive committee under Madam Pang, Newin's allies were fully represented.

In the legal dispute between Siam Sport and the association, the Supreme Court ruled earlier this month that FA Thailand must pay Siam Sport 360 million baht in damages with interest.

The lawsuit was filed during Big Odd's presidency but was settled during Madam Pang's first year as president.

In the case of Siam Sport, Madam Pang plans to bring the matter to the executive committee to file a lawsuit seeking to recover the 360 million baht plus interest, from the second defendant, Somyot Poompanmuang, and the previous executive committee.

In reality, more than half of the members of the previous executive committee still sit in the current committee under Madam Pang.

As the strategic mastermind behind both Big Odd and Madam Pang, Newin is unlikely to let the FA Thailand chief handle the situation alone.

What is certain is that "Bang Yi" is seizing the opportunity and immediately launching an attack against his old rival. 

Therefore, it seems like Madam Pang is in the middle of a battlefield.