UEFA, other football federations unite against Infantino
A few weeks ago, Gianni Infantino looked set for another unopposed term as FIFA president. Now, with an election looming, the beleagured football executive is
A few weeks ago, Gianni Infantino looked set for another unopposed term as FIFA president. Now, with an election looming, the beleagured football executive is counting the numbers and could be hanging by a thread. Gianni Infantino's already perilous position as FIFA president took another blow on Monday, as three continental football federations banded together in an apparent attempt to try to force him out. An "Open Letter to the Football Family" signed by the heads of UEFA (Europe), CONCACAF (North and Central America and the Caribbean) and AFC (Asia) appeared to take aim at Infantino — without actually mentioning him by name. "This is about something more fundamental: the integrity of the game, and the integrity of those elected to lead it. Leadership in football is not a possession. It is not about holding — or demanding — power to be held," the statement read. "It is a duty of service to the football family that entrusts it. When trust is broken through deception, when an individual places himself above the collective that entrusted him with authority, that duty has been abandoned." FIFA accused of blackmail in exchange for Infantino support To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video The letter criticizes Infantino's now scrapped plan to form a subsidiary arm of FIFA (International Federation of Association Football) in order to sell off part of its commercial operations to investors.
It says that even in withdrawing the plan, FIFA "did not acknowledge that the proposal itself was inherently wrong." It also labels the plan a "fundamental breach of trust" and lambasted Infantino's seemingly unilateral actions in bypassing the executive FIFA Council for his initial proposal and then holding a summit in Morocco with only selected senior figures within the organization. "It is not the conduct of a custodian of the game, but of one who believes the game is answerable to him. There is silence where there should be accountability, distance where there should be openness," the letter reads. The statement comes after media reports that UEFA paid off an alleged mistress of Infantino during his time at the European confederation. FIFA in response criticized "unsubstantiated assertions and demonstrably false claims" and said that "it is increasingly evident that there is a concerted and ongoing effort by some to undermine FIFA and its President." FIFA have not yet replied to a DW request for comment on the open letter. What does this change for Infantino? Were the national federations of the three confederations to fall in line, there would be easily enough votes to oust Infantino at the presidential election in March 2027. FIFA has 211 voting members and thus a presidential candidate in a two-horse race would require 106 votes. UEFA (55 members) AFC (46) and CONCACAF (35) would easily have enough if each confederation's members voted as a bloc.
The BriefWire