Who is Mikheil Kavelashvili, the ex-Man City player appointed president of Georgia?
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Mikheil Kavelashvili, a former Manchester City football player, was sworn in as Georgia’s new president today. It comes after a controversial election process denounced as ‘illegitimate’ by the outgoing president, Salome Zourabichvili and the country’s four opposition parties.
![[(FILES) Georgian players Mikhail Kavelashvili (L) fights for the ball at Ullevaal Stadium in Oslo 20 May 1999 during Euro 2000 group 2 qualifier. Georgia's ruling party on November 27, 2024 nominated far-right politician, former footballer and staunch loyalist Mikheil Kavelashvili as a candidate for president in the 14 December elections, aiming to further consolidate its grip on power. (Photo by TOR RICHARDSEN / SCANPIX / AFP) (Photo by TOR RICHARDSEN/SCANPIX/AFP via Getty Images)]](https://metro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/SEI_231090942-d7b5.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=646)
Kavelashvili, 53, is a member of the far-right Georgian Dream party, which won parliamentary elections in October, but their victory was hit by allegations of fraud. There have been several protests since – with many Georgians also furious at the government’s decision to suspend its application to join the EU.
![[FILES-GEORGIA-ELECTION-POLITICS]](https://metro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/SEI_231091020_011708.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=646)
The protests continued today, as Kavelashvili was sworn in behind closed doors in the capital, Tbilisi, with thousands taking to the streets. Kavelashvili started his career in football for Georgian team Dinamo Tbilisi and played for Manchester City from 1995 to 1997, scoring against rivals Manchester United on his debut.
He then joined Swiss club Grasshoppers, where he spent most of his time on the bench, before stints elsewhere in Switzerland at Zurich, Luzern, Sion, Aarau and Basel. He was disqualified from running for president of the Georgian Football Federation in 2015 due to a lack of higher education – a requirement for the role.
Kavelashvili entered politics in 2016, and was elected to parliament as a member of the Georgian Dream party, before leaving in 2022 to co-found the People’s Power party, which is widely seen as a satellite of Georgian Dream. During his time on Georgia’s political scene he has made a name for his anti-Western views and for being one of the most openly pro-Russian players in mainstream politics.
