English FA to withdraw support for Fifa president Infantino amid mounting pressure
The English Football Association is preparing to formally withdraw its support for Gianni Infantino‘s re-election as Fifa president. This decision comes as pressure mounts on Infantino’s leadership, particularly following his scrapped plans to sell stakes in Fifa competitions to private investors. The FA’s move follows a similar action by the Football Association of Wales, which publicly withdrew its backing for Infantino’s bid for another term.
Infantino is scheduled to seek re-election for a fourth and final term as president next March. To secure his position, he would need to obtain 106 votes from Fifa’s 211 member associations. The current developments suggest a significant challenge to his re-election prospects.
European Opposition to Infantino’s Plans
The controversy stems from Infantino’s proposal to create a commercial subsidiary, Fifa Forward Enterprise (FFE), which would manage Fifa’s main events, including its World Cups. Under this plan, external investors would have been able to purchase minority, non-controlling stakes in the FFE. This initiative has drawn strong criticism from several football governing bodies.
Uefa, European football’s governing body, has threatened legal action over these proposals. In a letter to Infantino, Uefa stated it is “actively considering legal action, arbitration, and/or regulatory complaints” in connection with the FFE plan. Uefa also requested “immediate steps” to preserve all relevant documents and electronically stored information related to the investment plan.
The request from Uefa specifically asked for the retention of documents, including emails, instant messages (such as WhatsApp, Signal, Teams, Slack), SMS, written correspondence, and meeting notes. These documents would cover interactions involving any Fifa officer, employee, committee member, consultant, agent, member association, confederation, broadcaster, sponsor, or financial institution. Uefa also sought the preservation of documents related to the payment structure for Fifa member associations, including its design, modelling, legal basis, approval, and communications.
Laura McAllister, a Uefa vice-president and former Wales international, described the potential for legal action as “a very clear call for action” regarding what she termed an “abysmal governance process” leading up to the FFE initiative. She expressed hope for a change in leadership next year, stating that “we cannot keep putting out fires because of unilateral plans.”
The Scottish FA‘s position on Infantino’s future is reportedly aligned with Uefa’s stated lack of confidence in the 56-year-old president. Other European countries are also expected to follow suit in withdrawing their support, with the Football Association of Finland already having done so last week. The Asian Football Federation (AFC) has expressed solidarity with Uefa and Concacaf in their concerns.
Growing Pressure and Potential Next Steps
Infantino’s leadership has faced public questioning from football’s governing bodies in Europe, North and Central America, and the Caribbean. Both Uefa and Concacaf have released statements criticising the FFE plans. Despite this, Infantino had written to all 211 Fifa member associations, indicating they would receive $40m if they backed his proposal, with a deadline of 19 September for an initial $20m payment.
The proposed investor group for FFE was expected to be led by Thrive Eternal, an American venture capital firm founded by Joshua Kushner. The mounting opposition, particularly from Europe, suggests a significant challenge to Infantino’s continued tenure.
While Serbia and Finland have withdrawn their support, Qatar, Lebanon, Kuwait, and Sri Lanka have pledged their support for Infantino. The distribution of votes among confederations is significant: Uefa has 55 votes, Africa 54, Asia 46, Concacaf 35, Oceania 11, and Conmebol 10. Africa, Conmebol, and Oceania have not criticised Infantino’s plan.
There is a possibility that the Fifa Council could attempt to force Infantino’s resignation through an emergency meeting. Such a meeting would be triggered if 19 of the 37 Fifa Council members call for one, and it would need to take place within two weeks. Uefa has nine members on the council, AFC has seven, Concacaf five, Africa has six, Conmebol five, and Oceania three. Infantino and secretary general Mattias Grafstrom complete the council.
The situation is described as delicately poised, with Uefa aiming to gather sufficient support from other continents to ensure the required 19 votes for an emergency meeting. The Football Association of Wales confirmed its withdrawal of support on Monday morning, citing “failures in good governance, processes, leadership, values, stakeholder management, communications and sound judgment” that led to a loss of confidence in Infantino.
The FA’s robust stance is not expected to be publicly announced through its withdrawal letter, as some European entities believe the movement to unseat Infantino needs to gain momentum across different continents. The outcome of this growing opposition will depend on the degree of leadership shown by members of the Asian Football Confederation and Concacaf, where opinions on Infantino’s reign are more divided. The 19 September deadline for member associations to access an initial payment for backing Infantino’s proposal has passed.
Source: bbc.com
