The Fifa president will be limited to three terms in office, in a raft of reforms passed by world football's governing body as it aims to recover from a corruption crisis.
A
new council will replace the current executive committee, featuring a female
representative from each confederation. Later
on Friday, Fifa will elect a new president to succeed Sepp Blatter.
Four
candidates remain in the running after Tokyo Sexwale withdrew at the
extraordinary congress in Zurich.
The
remaining candidates are Sheikh Salman bin Ebrahim al-Khalifa, Gianni
Infantino, Prince Ali bin al-Hussein and Jerome Champagne.
Swiss
Blatter, who held the position since 1998, was re-elected for a fifth term last
May but
resigned amid a growing corruption crisis.
The
election process began at 12:00 GMT, but several rounds of voting may be
required before a winner is known.
"We
stand united in our determination to put things right, so that the focus can
return to football once again," said acting Fifa president Issa Hayatou.
"The
hard work of restoring trust and improving how we work begins now.
"This
will create a system of stronger governance and greater diversity that will
give football a strong foundation on which to thrive. And it will deter future
wrongdoing."
What are the reforms?
Disclosure of salaries
This
will happen on an annual basis for the Fifa president, all Fifa council
members, the secretary general and relevant chairpersons of independent
standing and judicial committees.
Presidents limited to three terms of four years
This
applies to the Fifa president, Fifa council members and members of the audit
and compliance committee and of the judicial bodies. Sepp Blatter served five
terms as Fifa president dating back to 1998.
Separation of political and managerial functions
The
elected Fifa council will replace the executive committee and will be
responsible for setting the organisation's overall strategic direction. The
general secretariat will oversee the operational and commercial actions needed
to implement the strategy.
Promotion of women in football
A
minimum of one female representative will be elected as a council member per
confederation.
Why are reforms needed?
There
have been widespread allegations of corruption within Fifa, the arrest of
leading officials, the banning of its president and major sponsors withdrawing
their support.
Numerous
Fifa officials have been indicted in the United States, while Swiss authorities
are also investigating the organisation.
Blatter
has also been banned from all football activity for six years after being found
guilty of breaching Fifa's ethics rules over a $2m (£1.3m) "disloyal
payment" to the head of European football's governing body Uefa, Michel
Platini.
Former
France captain Platini was also suspended. Both men deny any wrongdoing and are
appealing to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
Furthermore,
Jerome Valcke, Fifa's secretary general and formerly Blatter's right-hand man,
was banned for 12 years following
allegations - which he denies - of misconduct while in office.