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FIFA elections: What you need to know

Amid corruption charges and turmoil in their organisation, FIFA will vote in their next president at the election in Zurich. You can watch the live stream above, but here is a guide to the day.

Who are the candidates? And what happened to the other two?

Current FIFA president Sepp Blatter is up against his former ally Prince Ali bin al-Hussein, an experienced and well-connected football administrator who is also a member of the Jordanian royal family. He also used to sit on the FIFA executive committee.

Initially, there were four candidates in the running, but at the beginning of last week, two of them stepped down. Michael van Praag, the Dutch Football Association president, and Luis Figo, a former striker for Real Madrid, Barcelona and Portugal, decided to throw their weight behind Prince Ali because they felt he had a better chance of winning.

How does the voting work and how long will it take?

Each of FIFA's 209 member nations have a vote, which is a secret ballot that takes place in Hallenstadion in Zurich. The FIFA congress begins at 8.30 a.m. BST, with the vote for the presidency item 17 on the agenda, so it could take some time before the election actually gets underway.

Before members cast their votes, each candidate will have a chance to address delegates for 15 minutes. In the first round, a candidate needs to get a two-thirds majority (139 votes) to be declared the winner. If the vote is closer than that, a second round is held, and then a simple majority is enough. The winning candidate would require 105 votes in the second round. A result is expected by 4 p.m. BST.

Can members abstain? And what happens if they don't vote?

Yes, members can abstain if they wish. During the last FIFA presidential election, in 2011, six federations, including the English FA, decided not to cast their ballot after Blatter's only rival, Mohammed bin Hammam, pulled out days earlier after bribery allegations. If a federation decides not to vote in the election, the vote will not be counted. There may be some federations that are not allowed to vote because of technical reasons, but that will be announced ahead of the vote.

Who will vote for whom? And what don't we know?

Both the Confederation of African Football and the Asian Football Confederation are likely to back Blatter, having already come out in favour of him. That's 100 votes already between them. Prince Ali is favoured by Europe and, according to UEFA president Michel Platini, is likely to pick up "45 or 46" votes from UEFA's 53 members.

What is less clear is the way North America (CONCACAF) and South America (CONMEBOL) will go. America's national federation has already stated it will back Prince Ali. What is not known is the impact this week's arrests of leading FIFA officials on corruption charges will have on voting.

What happens if Blatter wins?

Expect more of the same with some minor reforms. Blatter has insisted throughout his campaign that, overall, there is nothing wrong with how FIFA is run. The World Cup is hugely popular, and football's reach is spreading into new territories. FIFA claims to have already initiated some changes to combat corruption and if Blatter secures a fifth term, it is likely to introduce others, like more accountability for how money for development projects is spent.

This will not satisfy critics, and if Blatter does win, expect more political fireworks from UEFA, which is threatening to call an extraordinary general meeting of FIFA within three months in an attempt to oust him.

What happens if Prince Ali wins?

Apart from great delight within UEFA, there will be a root and branch overhaul in how FIFA does business and spends its money. The prince has promised major reforms in a number of key areas, including the sale of media and marketing rights for major tournaments. Greater accountability will also be introduced in how FIFA distributes an estimated $1 billion to smaller football nations for development projects and how the money is spent.

Transparency and accountability have been key words in the high-profile campaign run by the prince. He will also look to get rid of the FIFA bureaucracy and culture of patronage, which he claims leads to corruption. Under the prince, expect a cleaner, leaner, more efficient FIFA.

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