Issa Hayatou had been at the helm for 29 solid years. Madagascar's football chief Ahmad Ahmad replaced him as President of Confederation of African Football, widely known as CAF, on Thursday in an election held at the African Union Headquarters in Addis Ababa.
Ahmad, a father of two, won the election by 34 votes to Hayatou's 20 to become the seventh CAF president in the body's 60-year history. The result was greeted by cheers and deafening applause at the CAF congress.
When the reaction of the CAF officials was observed it sounded that they were tired of the outgoing president.
The 57-year-old had a discreet playing and coaching career before he took the reins of the Madagascar Football Federation (MFF) in 2003.
His rare and determined bid for "change" at the head of CAF this year took many by surprise, and the incumbent was seen in most quarters as a favourite.
As it was seen at the end he appeared very emotional. He was carried on the shoulders of jubilant supporters to the podium after the result was announced.
In contrast, the feeble Hayatou was led from the auditorium by aides looking frustrated. Knowing that his time is over, he found it difficult to accept the defeat in that big margin.
By contrast, the 57-year-old Ahmed said afterwards with shining smile: "This is sweet victory. When you work hard for years and months and you succeed, that is great." Ahmed goes by a single name.
"We worked hard and we won. That was the first step. The second step is to develop African football.
"Some days I thought I would win - I did it."
"When you try to do something, you mean that you can do it," Ahamd said to journalists after the vote. "If I can't do it, I never stand."
In his campaign for the continent's biggest position he said that his immediate target is to put the reform agenda for CAF. "My priority is to bring reform within the CAF administration. We don't allow politics and politicians to involve in football. The second is developing African football on a sound infrastructure," the new President said.
In the eyes of the current football officials the longest serving President Cameroonian Hayatou was credited with increasing the number of African teams at the World Cup and bringing in extra finance for the continent's competitions.
History has documented that the increase of African teams numbers at the World Cup was the work of the late Yidnekachew Tessema who served CAF until he died on August 19, 1988.
Yidnekachew takes credit for that. He fought to the finish and succeeded in getting more sots at the World Cup, one Ethiopian Football Federation official said who declined to give his name citing the issue as explosive.
It is obvious that in Hayatou's long era the African football has registered immense progress. Few among several progresses are; the expansion of the African Cup of Nations from eight to 16, remodelling and financially boosting club competitions and CAF.
Contrary to this the 70-year old Hayatou has been strongly criticized for his inability to run the office due to poor health.
George Afriyie, vice president of the Ghana Football Association, said on the occasion that His excellency Issa Hayatou has done a lot for African football but it is time for him to step down.
George further said, "Africa has made an emphatic decision that we are ready for change adding "It's a new dawn, all should be happy."
The Ghanaian FA speech epitomizes Hayatou's the new wind of change: "We're Africans and Africans never forget their elders. An elder has been defeated, but he's still an elder.
"The world has moved on, we really need energy. And the truth is Issa Hayatou is almost 70. There's only so much really that he can do."
"The world, technologically and in terms of the way you see things, has changed. Speaking with Ahmad, I found that he understood those things."
CAF Presidents will automatically become vice president of FIFA. Issa is no more entitled to that post.
So far the new President or his supporters didn't bring the issue of corruption and accusation of bribery to the table.
On the eve of the vote, it was announced that Hayatou and CAF secretary-general Hicham El-Amrani could face criminal charges in Egypt over deals secured for African football marketing and media rights between 2008 and 2028.
He was also accused by Britain's The Sunday Times of receiving 1.5 million USD to vote for Qatar when it was awarded the 2022 World Cup seven years ago.
In 2011, Hayatou was reprimanded by the International Olympic Committee over money he received from the scandal-tainted sports marketing company ISL in 1995.
Like all others, Hayatou has always denied any wrongdoing and insisted the money went to CAF.
One possible reason for Ahmed to remain silent about these cases fears of a possible repercussion.
Ahmad has also been implicated in the 2022 World Cup bribe-taking. The Sunday Times said Ahmed received between 30,000 and 100,000 USD for his vote. The Madagascar football chief has called the allegations unfounded. Until Ahmed clears this the talk on corruption or bribery may lead to an unexpected end.
After the victory of Ahmed was announced on Thursday, he said he will shortly introduce a new code of ethics and he has also pledged to extend ethics checks on African football officials.
