体坛英语新闻：CONMEBOL pulls Uruguayan Valdez from FIFA council

SANTIAGO, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- The South American Football Confederation (CONMEBOL) removed Uruguayan Wilmar Valdez from his FIFA council role on Friday and named Argentine Football Association (AFA) president Claudio Tapia as his interim replacement.

The announcement, made during a meeting of CONMEBOL representatives in Santiago, came less than three months after Valdez quit the presidency of the Uruguayan Football Association (AUF).

The resignation occurred just a day before Valdez was due to stand for re-election amid a scandal over the release of secret audio recordings in which he spoke about bribes. The case is being investigated by authorities.

An attempt to proceed with an election failed because two of the candidates did not meet CONMEBOL requirements.

FIFA said it would bring the association's statutes in line with its own rules before holding a new election by February next year.

Tapia, 51, was elected AFA president in March last year with a mandate until 2021.