Velappan, who devoted his life to football, served as Asian Football Confederation general secretary for 29 years, between 1978 and 2007.
Former sports journalist George Das, in paying tribute to Velappan, whom he came to know in 1972, said: “He was one of the first administrators to make it to the international stage, and a very nice man. He knew how to entertain the media and the media liked him. He was always there to give a story. He set the benchmark for Malaysian football administrators”
Former national footballer N Thanabalan said although Velappan was a “quiet” man, he was close to the players and often mixed freely with them, while M Chandran, the former national skipper described Velappan as a true “gentleman”.
“He helped a lot of footballers even off the field. He was a nice guy. He was my friend.”
Born in Siliau, Negeri Sembilan, Velappan had a passion for sports, especially football, in his formative years. He represented his state in relay events and other games.
He furthered his studies in England to become a teacher, He was attached to some English and European football teams, while there, to learn football coaching and management.
In 1963 he was appointed assistant secretary of the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) when prime minister Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-haj was the president.
After obtaining a degree in education at McGill University in Montreal, Canada, he was appointed deputy director of sports at the ministry of youth, culture, and sports in 1972.
In 1978, he was appointed the general secretary of the AFC and played a key role in developing football in the region for nearly three decades. During this time, he also served on several Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) committees, helping organise 12 World Cups.
Most notably, Velappan was appointed the coordination director for the 2002 Korea-Japan World Cup, the first time the tournament was co-hosted by two countries and also the first time it was held in Asia.
Even after retirement, Velappan continued to speak up about the game. For him, football was more than just a sport. He often highlighted how important it was in nation-building, as all races loved the sport.
He used to lament that Malaysians from different walks of life no longer played the “beautiful game” together and was always hopeful that this would change.