Uefa has warned Gianni Infantino that his leadership style cannot continue, calling for a thorough and fundamental review of Fifa’s governance. In a strongly worded statement that mentioned “secret schemes,” “shabby backroom deals,” and “faceless individuals,” Uefa’s leadership made it clear they want change at the top of Fifa, even though the world governing body reversed its decision overnight to abandon Infantino’s plan to sell stakes in the World Cup and other competitions.
Fifa scraps proposal to sell off stakes in World Cup after widespread backlash
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While Uefa stopped short of asking Infantino to resign, its leadership is understood to be determined that he should not be allowed to survive a crisis he created himself. This view is shared by many of the biggest football governing bodies around the world. Leading European officials are already believed to have started looking for a candidate to run against Infantino in next year’s Fifa presidential election, and this process will continue over the coming days.
Uefa’s statement made clear that under president Aleksander Ceferin, who managed to get all 55 member associations to support a World Cup boycott last Thursday, it will keep pushing for change.
“We cannot keep going on like this with secret schemes on fast track timescales, cooked up by faceless individuals and of dubious benefit to the game,” the statement read. “We must identify those responsible and hold them to account.
“It is right that, in the coming days and weeks, Uefa will work with its associations and in close cooperation with other confederations to reflect on how this happened and devise a plan to make sure that it cannot occur again. That review should be thorough and fundamental. No option should be off the table. The current Fifa leadership has not only lost Uefa’s confidence, but also that of many other members of the football family.”
Uefa then directly criticized Infantino, saying he has failed to deliver on promises he made to be transparent and accountable before he was first elected president in 2016.
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Aleksander Ceferin and Gianni Infantino, pictured together in 2024. Photograph: Nick Potts/PA
The Football Association backed Uefa and, in a statement, said: “We fully support Uefa’s position. It is time for a full and robust review of Fifa’s leadership and governance to ensure that the global game is run transparently, for the benefit of all 211 member nations and with the long-term stewardship of football at its heart!”
Speaking in Manchester on Saturday, Britain’s prime minister, Andy Burnham, said it was the “right decision” for Fifa to back down. This comes after he previously called the plans “outrageous” and said bringing them forward made it clear that Infantino was “the wrong man to lead the organisation.”
Elsewhere in Europe, the Dutch FA said the withdrawal of Infantino’s proposal was not the end of the issue, adding: “The matter is not settled for the KNVB. The way this process has unfolded has led to a fundamental breach of trust in the leadership of Fifa president Gianni Infantino. The KNVB no longer has confidence in his leadership.”
Infantino had been expected to be re-elected unopposed for a third full term at next March’s Fifa Congress in Rabat, but while he is determined to stay on, the 56-year-old could now face a challenger. Although he has already secured more than 200 letters of support from member associations endorsing his re-election campaign, these can be withdrawn, and the deadline for other candidates to announce an intention to stand is not until 18 November.
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Paris Saint-Germain president Nasser Al-Khelaifi is the preferred choice for many in Europe, but he seems hesitant to run and also leads the powerful lobbying group European Football Clubs. Other possible candidates include Victor Montagliani, the Canadian head of North American confederation Concacaf, and Asian Football Confederation president Salman al-Khalifa, who narrowly lost to Infantino in the 2016 Fifa election.
Uefa’s statement turned Infantino’s own words from his election campaign a decade ago against him. “When Gianni Infantino asked for the trust and votes of Fifa’s Member Associations to become president in 2016, he said, ‘Of course we have to be transparent. I have been this in the last 15 years of my life in Uefa. You will have to play a part every day in the life of Fifa,’ before telling the assembled stakeholders, ‘The money of Fifa is your money. It’s not the money of the Fifa president. It’s your money. You are the national associations, and the money of Fifa has to serve for the development of football and not for anything else.’ On both these promises, he has failed to deliver. The shabby, back room, opaque deal he hatched and tried to force through were anything but transparent. And with reserves standing at over $5bn, he has also failed to use associations’ money for the benefit of the game.”
Uefa also called for an immediate overhaul of Fifa’s system of financial distribution, the Fifa Forward programme, where all 211 member associations receive the same central payment from Fifa over each four-year cycle. Infantino had claimed that selling 20% of a new commercial company – Fifa Forward Enterprise – to private investors would allow them to increase the Fifa Forward payments from $8m over the next four-year cycle to $20m, plus a one-off $20m bonus for joining the scheme.
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The Fifa logo in front of its headquarters in Zurich, Switzerland. Gianni Infantino’s senior adviser Carlos Cordeiro and chief operating officer Kevin Lamour opposed his plan. Photograph: Arnd Wiegmann/Reuters
Handing out millions of dollars to tiny nations has been widely criticized as a system of patronage designed to keep Infantino in office, while the $20m bonus offered to associations that signed up by a deadline of 19 September was condemned.
“Uefa will begin work immediately with partners and stakeholders all over the world and right across the game to propose a new way of distributing resources through the existing Fifa Forward programme,” its statement continued. “We must start to use some of that money that is sat idle in Fifa’s bank account to deliver the kick start that the grassroots and the wider game need in each of the 211 countries of Fifa. But we don’t need to sell off the family silver to pay for it.
“This is a victory for the whole game. But it must not be the end of the story. The proposal has gone. The task of rebuilding trust in Fifa has only just begun.”
Frequently Asked Questions
Here is a list of FAQs addressing the situation ranging from basic questions to more nuanced analysis
General Background Questions
1 What exactly happened with Gianni Infantino and UEFA
UEFA has reportedly lost confidence in FIFA President Gianni Infantino This stems from his decision to abandon a secret plan to sell the global TV rights for the 2026 and 2030 World Cups to a private investment fund a move UEFA strongly opposed
2 Why did UEFA oppose the plan to sell off World Cup rights
UEFA was worried that selling the rights to a private equity firm would reduce the value of the rights over time They were also concerned that a private company would likely increase subscription prices for fans and take money out of football that should be reinvested into the sport
3 Does this mean Infantino is being fired
No UEFA cannot fire the FIFA President However losing confidence means they no longer trust his leadership or decisionmaking This is a political move that signals they may oppose him in the next FIFA presidential election
4 Is this the first time there has been tension between Infantino and UEFA
No There have been disagreements before especially regarding the idea of holding the World Cup every two years However this is seen as a major breaking point because it involves direct financial governance and secret negotiations
The Abandoned Plan
5 What was the secret plan to sell off World Cup rights
Infantino was reportedly in talks with a consortium of investors to sell the exclusive global media and marketing rights for the next two World Cups for a lump sum of around 3 billion This would have given the investors the right to sell the broadcasting rights to TV networks themselves
6 Why did Infantino want to sell the rights in the first place
The main motivation appears to be speed and immediate cash flow By selling the rights upfront FIFA would get a massive influx of cash immediately which they could use to fund their development projects and increase their cash reserves without waiting for individual countries to bid on the rights
7 If the plan is abandoned what happens to the World Cup rights now
The status quo remains FIFA will go back to the traditional process of selling the broadcasting
