Mohamed bin Hammam has had his lifetime FIFA ban annulled by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), in what is another major embarrassment for president Sepp Blatter.
Bin Hammam had the ban imposed by the ethics committee for bribery one year ago, and although the Qatari's innocence has not been proven, the appeal was upheld by CAS on the grounds of a lack of evidence.
He was found guilty in 2011 of paying bribes to Caribbean officials while he campaigned against Blatter for the FIFA presidency.
As a result of the investigation, he withdrew from the presidential race, leaving Blatter to farcically run unopposed.
Bin Hammam, 63, was president of the Asian Football Confederation and he was provisionally suspended by that governing body earlier this week.
He was alleged to have breached a number of AFC regulations, relating to gifts and bribery. He has always maintained the Fifa action against him was retribution for having challenged Blatter for the presidency.