Embattled FIFA president Gianni Infantino intends to stand for re-election for a fourth term amid significant controversy regarding his tenure.
“The FIFA President announced in April that he will stand for re-election in 2027,” said a statement released by the organization, via the BBC. “Of course, nothing has changed. Mr. Infantino will be standing for re-election.”
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Infantino was asked by reporters at the Women’s Under-20 World Cup in Poland if he intended to resign, but refused to answer questions on Saturday.
“There will be a lot to say, but there will be a right place and a right time,” Infantino told Sky Sports. “It’s not today, it’s not here.”
Calls for Infantino’s resignation arose following his plans to sell stakes in FIFA competitions, including the men’s and women’s World Cup, to private investment firms, one of which is run by venture capitalist Josh Kushner. The project, ultimately abandoned, was known as FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE).
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UEFA, the governing body of European football, is considering taking legal action against Infantino after pursuing legal action in August to undertake the discovery process in order to uncover information about the FFE. If actions viewed as “fradulent” are uncovered, UEFA could bring criminal charges against Infantino, in addition to other FIFA officials.
Among the allegations against Infantino is that investors were offered “absurdly low” stakes in the FFE venture. Under this arrangement, Kushner’s venture capital firm Thrive Capital was going to pay $4.2 billion to FIFA for a 20% stake in a company set up to run commercial events such as the men’s and women’s World Cup.
From the UEFA legal application, via the BBC:
“Under the terms Infantino announced, those investors stood to acquire a permanent financial interest in Fifa’s commercial arm for $4.2bn, implying an absurdly low enterprise value of only approximately $20bn, a figure that was neither the product of an open, competitive auction, nor tested by any independent valuer.”
[…]
“Infantino pushed the plan through internal FIFA approval only days earlier at a hastily convened meeting where a limited number of FIFA’s management officials and employees — some of whom had never heard of the plan — were given mere hours to sign off on an unprecedented multi-billion dollar scheme.”
Before the FFE proposal was scrapped, UEFA threatened to boycott FIFA competitions if it went through. CONCACAF, the governing body of football in North and Central America and the Caribbean, joined UEFA in rejecting the proposal, as did South America’s CONMEBOL.
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The Asian Football Confederation also protested, expressing “serious concerns” over matters extending “far beyond a single proposal,” according to The Athletic.
UEFA has stated its intention to work with the other world soccer federations to find a candidate who can run against Infantino. Nominations must be submitted by Nov. 18.
Any candidate also running for the FIFA post must be backed by at least 106 of the 211 FIFA member associations, the BBC reports. Among the candidates being considered is CONCACAF president Victor Montagliani.
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