In order to achieve selective hydrodesulfurization (HDS) of fluid catalytic cracked (FCC) gasoline for producing S < 10 ppm sulfur-free gasoline, we developed CoMoP/Al2O3 catalysts by using a special ligand and examined their catalytic performances. The developed CoMoP/ Al2O3 catalyst showed higher HDS activity and more depressed olefin hydrogenation than commercial catalyst. The HDS selectivity of the developed catalysts depended on their sulfidation conditions. From the results of NO pulse adsorption and FT-IR of adsorbed NO, the organic residues derived from a ligand have influence on the formation of catalytically active sites such as coordinatively unsaturated molybdenum sites (Mo CUS) and seem to result in the differences of catalytic performance between developed and commercial catalysts. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.