FIFA, IOC figure Ahmad to fight jail term

Sheikh Ahmad Fahad Al-Sabah, one of the most powerful figures in soccer and the Olympics, has vowed to fight a six-month jail term imposed in Kuwait for insulting the judiciary.

Sheikh Ahmad, a member of the FIFA executive committee and the International Olympic Committee, was sentenced to jail by a lower court on Thursday, local media said.

The sheikh, also president of the Olympic Council of Asia, was convicted of casting doubt on the integrity of the judiciary, insulting the public prosecution and threatening public order in a television interview three years ago, Al-Qabas newspaper reported.

The case has erupted in the weeks after FIFA and the IOC suspended Kuwait for government interference in sport.

The sheikh said he is appealing against the jail term and a 1000 dinar ($A4525) fine and denied any wrongdoing.

"This is a personal attack and unfortunately is symptomatic of the current relationship between Kuwait and the sports movement," the sheikh said in a statement released by the OCA.

"Under Kuwait's Democratic Constitution, it is my right to express my opinion freely, and that is all that I have done," he added.

"I have fought against all forms of corruption and promoted freedom of speech all my life - when I was in the military, when I was in the government and now within the sports movement.

"I will continue to protect the value of democracy, freedom of right of speech and the autonomy of the sports."

The OCA statement said the 55-year-old royal had been "personally targeted for criticisms he made on the general situation in Kuwait during a television interview three years ago".