Sea billionaire founder Forrest Li to run for Singapore football association presidency

A spokesperson for Li confirmed his intention to run for office on Monday, telling The Straits Times that he is eager to introduce his team in the next two weeks.

The FAS council election is conducted through two methods: a slate basis and an individual basis. In the slate system, a team of nine candidates is proposed and elected as a group. The remaining six members are nominated and elected individually, according to The New Paper.

Candidate nominations are open from Monday and must be submitted by March 31, with the list of qualified candidates set to be announced on April 18. The extraordinary congress, where the election takes place, is scheduled for April 28.

Incumbent FAS president Bernard Tan, who was elected in September 2023 to serve the remainder of the 2022-2025 term, has not yet confirmed whether he will seek re-election.

Li, 47, founder of Singapore-based Sea Limited, Southeast Asia’s largest internet firm, has a net worth of US$8 billion as of March 17, 2025, according to Forbes. The U.S. magazine also ranked him as the 12th richest in the city-state last year.

He is known to be passionate about football and serves as the chairman of Singaporean professional football club Lion City Sailors, formerly known as Home United before it was acquired and renamed by Sea in 2020.

The firm also has a strong presence in Asian football. Its gaming arm Garena sponsored the city-state’s Young Lions football club in 2016, as reported by The Drum.

Shopee, its e-commerce arm, was a league sponsor for the 2019-2020 Indonesian Liga 1 and is the title sponsor of the 2024–25 ASEAN Club Championship.