Deep divisions in North America's football federation, CONCACAF, have been exposed after its secretary-general was fired and then reinstated within hours.
The confederation's acting president tried on Tuesday to fire Chuck Blazer, whose allegations of bribery have rocked world football.
It all came just hours before FIFA was expected to vote Sepp Blatter as its president for a fourth consecutive term on Wednesday.
In a letter to Blazer, Lisle Austin, who has taken over temporarily from the suspended Jack Warner as CONCACAF chief, said Blazer was "terminated as general secretary of CONCACAF with immediate effect."
Austin, a Barbadian, is viewed as a close Caribbean ally of Warner's and the letter was distributed by a media official in Port of Spain, the capital of Trinidad and Tobago.
Blazer swiftly responded with a statement issued by CONCACAF's media department in New York that said the move was "unauthorised" and that the American remained in office.
Blazer was the whistle-blower who made allegations of corruption against Caribbean football federations, which led to the suspension of Warner, a former ally and the long-standing CONCACAF president.
The American produced a report to FIFA which alleged that bribes had been paid during a meeting with Caribbean federations in Port of Spain earlier this month.
Mohamed bin Hammam, the Asian football chief, was at that time a candidate against incumbent FIFA president Blatter. He has since withdrawn and also been provisionally suspended by FIFA's ethics committee pending an inquiry
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