Largely unnoticed by the rest of the world, Saudi Arabia held a presidential election last week. The presidency in question – that of the Saudi Arabian Football Federation (SAFF) – was scarcely of earth-shattering importance and yet, in several respects, the election marked a significant milestone.

SAFF, in effect, has become a soccer republic. For the first time since its foundation in 1956 by Prince Abdullah bin Faisal Al Saud, football's governing body in the kingdom is no longer run by a member of the royal family. In last week's election, members of the general assembly had a choice of two candidates (neither of them royals), who set out their platforms in a TV debate. And if that kind of process can work for SAFF, might it not be applied to other official bodies in the kingdom too?

The presidency became vacant earlier this year when 34-year-old Prince Nawaf bin Faisal resigned – reportedly because of pressure from fans after Saudi Arabia was beaten by Australia in a World Cup qualifying match.

His successor, elected for a four-year term by 32 votes to 30, is Ahmed Eid Alharbi, a former goalkeeper with the Jeddah-based Al-Ahli club. Alharbi has been described as a reformer and a proponent of women's soccer (an issue that causes as much alarm in the kingdom as gay marriage does in the United States).

Decrepit regimes like to associate themselves with sport – partly because they think it boosts their image, but also often to provide a plaything for junior members of the ruling family irrespective of their capabilities or performance.

In Iraq, Saddam Hussain's brutal son, Uday, was put in charge of the Iraqi Olympic Committee and, by extension, the national football team (which he led it its worst-ever FIFA ranking). In Libya, 
Saadi Gaddafi was captain of Tripoli and the national football team as well as president of the Libyan Football Federation. In Bahrain, the president, secretary-general and chief executive of the National Olympic Committee are all members of the royal family.

Writing for the Turbulent World of Middle East Soccer blog, James Dorsey says Prince Nawaf's resignation from SAFF "marked the first time that a member of the ruling elite saw association with a national team's failure as a risk to be avoided rather than one best dealt with by firing the coach or in extreme cases like Saddam Hussein's Iraq or Muammar Qaddafi's Libya brutally punishing players".

There may be truth in that, but Ahmed al-Omran of the Riyadh Bureau blog says the election for his replacement "took place specifically because FIFA insists that national football federations must be independent from governments". He points out that in 2008 Kuwait was suspended by FIFA over the issue of government interference in the affairs of Kuwaiti football.

Despite stepping down from SAFF, Prince Nawaf continues to exercise his royal prerogative in other areas of sport. He remains president of the National Olympic Committee and is also the senior official responsible for youth welfare (through which he will still control some of SAFF's funding).

Dorsey writes:

"Major soccer clubs moreover continue to be the playground of princes who at times micro-manage matches by phoning mid-game their team's coaches with instructions which players to replace.

"In addition, sports remains a male prerogative in the arch-conservative kingdom. Saudi Arabia underlined its lack of intention to develop women’s sports by last year engaging Spanish consultants to develop its first ever national sports plan – for men only."

Posted by Brian Whitaker, 26 December 2012.