The AFC Executive Committee expressed severe concerns after they received an update surrounding the situation in Kuwait, which has been suspended as a member of FIFA since October 2015.

Hope had been expressed by the AFC that the issues which have plagued the country would be resolved, but acting Sports Minister Khaled Nasser Al-Roudan has since extended the mandate of the Government-installed interim football committee for a further three months.

Al-Roudan replaced the controversial Sheikh Salman Sabah Al-Salem Al-Humoud Al-Sabah, who was responsible for a controversial 2015 law which intervened in the Kuwait Olympic Committee and other National Federations, earlier this month.

The AFC are concerned "irreparable damage" has been done to the opportunities for young footballers in Kuwait, while they have also been informed of a number of troubling incidents in the sport.

Allegations of match-fixing to favour unnamed "certain clubs" have surfaced, while there are also fears over rising levels of violence, which led to the death of under-12 player Fisail Talal Al Mutairi of the Khetan Club.

He died on the way to a hospital as a result of injuries received in a match, the AFC said.

Twenty-two referees have also resigned in protest at the "management of certain competitions".

"The AFC Executive Committee had already denounced Government interference at their meeting in Kuala Lumpur and they agreed that the situation was deteriorating rapidly in Kuwait with the very infrastructure of the game being threatened," the AFC said in a statement.

"Fears persist that at least one generation - possibly two - could have lost their opportunity of representing their teams and country in top level competitions – like the AFC Cup final, the AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019 and even the FIFA World Cup in Russia in 2018."

A group of Kuwaiti officials, made up of ex-players and those who had previously been involved in football in the nation, unsuccessfully lobbied for reinstatement prior to last year's FIFA Congress in Mexico City.

World football's governing body voted to maintain the suspension of the Kuwait Football Association amid continued Government interference.

It was hoped this may be eased with Al-Roudan, who is also the Minister of Commerce and Industry and has added sport to his portfolio of responsibilities, replacing Sheikh Salman but officials in the country told insidethegames that "nothing has changed so far".

"He used to be part of Sheikh Salman's team and is not making the required changes," the official added.