The 40-year-old hopeful for football's top job met with Iraqi officials in Jordan's capital Amman and reportedly left the delegation suitably impressed.

"We have decided that Iraq’s vote will go to Prince Ali because Prince Ali has always supported the development of football in Iraq, Jordan and our region," said Iraq Football Association President Abdul Khaliq Masood, according to a statement issued by the candidate's campaign team.

"The FA has endorsed Prince Ali in a letter to FIFA."

The Iraqi Minister of Sports and Youth, Abdul Hussein Abtan, was said to have met with Prince Ali alongside Masood, with former Iraq players also present.

"We are very pleased to support Prince Ali," he reportedly told Iraqi state television.

"He is the best man for the job.

"We greatly appreciate everything Jordan has done to support Iraqi sports and youth over the years."

Iraqi teams have often used Jordan as an exit point for international fixtures, as well as using their neighbour as a venue for "home" games due to the country being unable to stage fixtures because of security concerns in the war-hit Middle-Eastern countrty.

Discussions on lifting this ban were also held during the meeting with Prince Ali.

The endorsement is a boost for the Jordanian, who is the third son of King Hussein, after he was critical of an agreement signed between the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and the Confederation of African Football (CAF).

Both organisations claimed that this partnership would simply see them "work closer together on the development of football" but Prince Ali described it as a "blatant attempt" to secure a bloc vote for his Presidential rival, AFC leader Shaikh Salman Bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa.

He has written to FIFA’s Electoral Committee to ask them to investigate ahead of the vote, due to take place at an Extraordinary Congress in Zurich on February 26.

The arrangement was signed by Shaikh Salman alongside CAF head Issa Hayatou, who has been serving as acting FIFA President following Sepp Blatter's eight-year ban for the "disloyal" payment he made to UEFA chief Michel Platini.

Hayatou has since opted to take a back-seat from his CAF role in a bid to avoid conflict of interest allegations.

He has devolved various continental powers to first vice-president Suketu Patel and second deputy Almamy Kabele Camara.

Frenchman Jérôme Champagne, South African businessman Tokyo Sexwale and UEFA general secretary Gianni Infantino are also running for FIFA President.