FIFA Football Awards: Criticism for appointing Adriana Lima as the Global fan Brand Ambassador

Moya Dodd is the former international player who served on the committee for Australia and New Zealand's successful bid to co-host the World Cup. She said Lima's appointment less than five months before the tournament was "tone deaf". Adrina Lima was present at the recent FIFA Football Awards show.

Dodd was a member of the FIFA Council from 2013 to 2016. She also brought up the comments Lima made in a 2006 interview with the magazine GQ in which she said abortion was "a crime".

She is a prominent women's soccer advocate who represented Australia 24 times from 1986-95. Moya also played in FIFA's women's invitational tournament in 1988, three years before the inaugural Women's World Cup.

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"When a girl plays football, the world sees her differently," Dodd said. "Instead of being complimented on her nice looks or her pretty dress, she is valued for her game-saving tackles and brilliant goal-scoring.

"In a FIFA World Cup year, that's the message that should be ringing loud and true around the world. Where a supermodel fits into this is truly baffling." - Moya Dodd

FIFA Football Awards: Adriana Lima

Brazilian Supermodel Adriana Lima has more than 15 million Instagram followers. She will "develop, promote and participate in several global initiatives" in her role as FIFA's first global fan ambassador, the governing body said in a statement on Monday.

"At the outset, the model's public image looked an odd fit for an organization that says it wants to empower girls and women," Dodd, one of the first women to serve on FIFA's decision-making body, wrote in a post on LinkedIn on Wednesday.

"I asked whether the FIFA ambassador will be delivering messages on body image, well-being, and healthy eating.

"What will this ambassador represent to the large and growing population of aspirational #womensfootball players and fans who love the game because (it) shows us what empowerment and equality can look like?"

Lima's publicist, Laurent Boye, said the model's point of view and opinions had changed in the 17 years since she made those comments.

"We can proudly say that Ms. Lima has been promoting a healthy lifestyle for several years and like many people, her position on many LGBTQIA+ and women issues has evolved and she is considered an ally," Boye said in a statement.