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The South African Football Association (Safa) has appointed Leslie Sedibe as interim chief executive just a day after announcing that Raymond Hack was stepping down.

The change is part of the restructure of the organisation under the leadership of new president Kirsten Nematandani as the power struggle in South African football hots up ahead of this summer’s World Cup.

The tournament’s chief executive Danny Jordaan, a Nematandani ally, will replace 36-year-old Sedibe as Safa chief executive when the event is over.

However, Nematandani insisted that Sedibe – who is currently the head of legal affairs on the 2010 World Cup organising committee and is also a member of the interim board of South African’s national broadcaster, the SABC – will be “around for a long time as part of our new vision for South African soccer”.

“Sedibe is a young and visionary leader and we are confident that he will take the organisation to new and greater heights,” said Nematandani.

“Sedibe’s many achievements to date and his passion for football, especially at a grassroots level, assures me of his talent and ability to help transform Safa into a world-class football association.”

Sedibe added: “I am honoured to be given this opportunity to serve South African football. This is an important year for us and I believe I can make a contribution towards developing a new vision for football in South Africa.”

Hack is thought to have paid the price for being a close ally of World Cup organising committee chairman Ivan Khoza, a bitter rival of Jordaan.

But speaking to reporters in Johannesburg, Nematandani maintained that Hack’s departure has nothing to do with personal rivalries.

“We have been rational,” he continued. “We gave him a chance, but we have now reached a decision that it’s best to part ways. His contract was due to expire in July, so we thought it best to find someone who would stay beyond that and implement our vision.”