FIFA confirmed Gianni Infantino plans to stand for re-election in 2027 for a final term extending through 2031
Infantino faces mounting pressure to resign following an abandoned, controversial plan to sell stakes in the World Cup
UEFA stated it has lost confidence in Infantino and is reportedly preparing a criminal complaint in Swiss courts over financial mismanagemen
Gianni Infantino To Seek Re-Election As FIFA President In 2027 Despite Growing Backlash Over World Cup Plan
Despite intense pressure to quit from UEFA, the English FA, and political figures following a collapsed plan to sell World Cup stakes, Infantino is proceeding with his re-election bid ahead of the November 18 candidate deadline
Summary
Gianni Infantino will seek re-election as FIFA president next year despite mounting pressure on him to quit after a failed plan to sell stakes in the World Cup sparked a fierce backlash. FIFA stated on Sunday that Infantino plans to contest the 2027 election for a final term that would keep him in office until 2031.
Nov. 18 is the deadline for candidates to enter the next presidential race, exactly four months before the vote. Opposition to Infantino has widened from criticism over the World Cup stake-sale plan to organised resistance from European football bodies and national associations.
His latest move comes after calls for him to step down gathered pace in recent months. FIFA has already apologised for mistakes in the proposed World Cup commercial structure, but that has not eased the pressure around his leadership or the fallout from the abandoned plan.
FIFA Confirms Re-Election Bid
FIFA made its position explicit.
“The FIFA President announced in April that he will stand for re-election in 2027. Of course, nothing has changed. Mr. Infantino will be standing for re-election,” a FIFA spokesperson said.
That confirmation matches Infantino’s own announcement in April that he would stand again in 2027. Sunday’s statement repeated that his plan had not changed.
Opposition Continues To Build
Resistance is growing.
UEFA has led the calls for Infantino to go and has said it lost confidence in him. The European body had earlier threatened to boycott FIFA competitions, including the World Cup, as the dispute over his leadership deepened.
Support has also weakened elsewhere. A number of national associations, including the English FA, have withdrawn backing for Infantino’s re-election bid.
The political pressure has spread beyond football bodies. British Prime Minister Andy Burnham joined the debate last month and said Infantino was not the right man to lead world football’s governing body.
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World Cup Plan Fallout
The dispute centres on money.
Infantino came under fire over a controversial plan to sell stakes in the World Cup through a commercial subsidiary. The proposal drew a furious reaction and later collapsed.
FIFA then apologised for errors in the plan to sell profits from the World Cup through that subsidiary. It also promised to “ensure they do not happen again”.
Legal troubles are mounting for the FIFA chief. UEFA is readying a criminal filing against Infantino in Swiss courts over potential financial mismanagement. The action targets his scrapped initiative to offload future World Cup earnings to private financiers.
Poland Press Conference Response
Infantino avoided the issue in public.
On Saturday he refused to discuss his future when he arrived for the opening of the Under-20 Women’s World Cup in Poland.
“There will be a lot to say, but there will be a right place and a right time to say this. It’s not today, it’s not here, but here and today, we are enjoying football,” he told Sky News.
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