Infantino says he has backing of ‘vast, vast majority’ of world football

Efe Ozkan

FIFA President Gianni Infantino insisted he retains the backing of the “vast, vast majority” of world football, dismissing questions about whether he considered resigning following the collapse of a controversial proposal to transfer part of FIFA’s commercial rights to a private investment firm.

In an interview with BBC Sport on Saturday, Infantino struck a defiant tone about his position and defended his approach to managing disagreements within world football’s governing body.

“There is nothing bad in disagreeing,” he said. “We see it every day in so many countries in the world. It’s OK to disagree. It’s OK to have different points of view, but then we need to be able to move on.”

Infantino faced mounting calls to stand down two months ago following the controversy surrounding the FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE) proposal.

In September, the English Premier League, Germany’s Bundesliga, Spain’s La Liga and Italy’s Serie A called for “fundamental” reform of FIFA, accusing the governing body of concentrating excessive regulatory, commercial and political power in the presidency.

The FFE proposal would have involved transferring a portion of FIFA’s commercial rights to a private investment firm through a new commercial entity, including rights linked to FIFA competitions such as the World Cup.

The proposal was abandoned within days of details emerging, prompting criticism from several confederation presidents and major European leagues.

Infantino apologized to the FIFA Council at its Oct. 15 meeting in Zurich for mistakes in the proposal’s communication and consultation process.

The three-and-a-half-hour meeting was the first FIFA Council gathering since the FFE plan became public.

English Football Association Chair Debbie Hewitt, who is also a FIFA vice president, said several questions remained unanswered despite the “most robust, most frank, most open Council meeting” she had experienced.

However, relations between Infantino and some of his previous critics have since improved.

Asian Football Confederation President Sheikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa on Friday pledged the AFC’s support for Infantino’s bid for another term as FIFA president, signaling a reconciliation after the dispute over the FFE project.

Sheikh Salman had joined the heads of UEFA and CONCACAF in criticizing the proposal in August, with the three confederation presidents describing it as a “fundamental breach of trust.”

The AFC president said the two sides had since reached an understanding and were ready to move forward.

“We need to move forward. And we believe football is strongest when we work together with a shared vision and a common purpose,” he said.

Infantino has led FIFA since 2016 and is seeking another term in the election scheduled for March 2027.