FIFA decries ‘concerted’ effort to undermine Infantino as crisis deepens

FIFA warns against what ‌it calls a “concerted and ongoing effort” to undermine President Gianni Infantino, saying attempts to challenge his ⁠leadership must follow the ⁠governing body’s statutes and democratic procedures.

The statement on Saturday came amid an increasingly bitter standoff over Infantino’s leadership following the collapse of his proposal to raise about $4.2bn by selling a stake ⁠in the commercial rights of the World Cup and other tournaments.

The plan triggered criticism from UEFA, national associations and senior FIFA officials; led to calls for Infantino to resign; and prompted a crisis meeting in Morocco ⁠this past week, at which FIFA’s leadership reaffirmed its support for the president.

FIFA did not identify those it said were seeking to undermine Infantino or specify which reports or allegations it was referring to.

The statement followed reports by The Daily Telegraph about payments made by UEFA to a former employee with whom the newspaper said Infantino was having an intimate relationship during his time as the European governing body’s ‌general secretary.

He has denied those allegations, and FIFA has rejected them as unfounded.

When contacted by the AFP news agency, UEFA acknowledged that “a departure payment was made to the individual in question” at that time, “coupled with the payment of fees for an MBA course at a local business school”.

FIFA said recent reporting has included “unsubstantiated assertions and demonstrably false claims” concerning FIFA and its president, adding that it would challenge inaccurate or misleading reports “directly and vigorously”.

FIFA added it would not support, facilitate or tolerate any process concerning the election of its president ⁠that was inconsistent with its statutes, democratic procedures and governance framework.

“The FIFA president ⁠was democratically elected by FIFA’s member associations and continues to serve with their mandate,” it said.

“Those who do not have the support of FIFA’s Member Associations should not seek to achieve through allegation, insinuation or misinformation what they cannot achieve through FIFA’s established democratic processes,” FIFA said.

After the crisis meeting in Morocco on Wednesday, FIFA apologised to its 211 member associations for mistakes in the handling of the proposed World Cup spinoff and said its leadership had ⁠reaffirmed its full support for Infantino.

The fallout has cast a shadow over Infantino’s bid for a fourth term at the FIFA Congress in Morocco in March. ⁠No clear candidate to challenge him has yet emerged.

UEFA has said it no longer has confidence in Infantino while Norwegian Football Federation President Lise Klaveness called on Friday for him to resign, saying he no longer had the institutional trust required to govern FIFA.

But Infantino continues to enjoy substantial support among FIFA’s 211 ‌members. The Confederation of African Football (CAF) unanimously backed his leadership on Thursday while South America’s CONMEBOL rejected any attempt to oust him that did not involve a vote of all FIFA members.

Mexico’s football federation (FMF) also backed ‌Infantino ‌despite its regional confederation, CONCACAF, having called for a “comprehensive reckoning” with his presidency.

“The FMF will neither recognise nor approve any process convened outside of that institutional framework,” the Mexican federation said.