Norway Calls for Infantino to Resign as FIFA President
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- Norway became the first association to explicitly demand Infantino's resignation, with NFF president Lise Klaveness declaring he "does not have the institutional trust required to govern Fifa stably in the times we are in."
- England, Wales, Croatia and Albania withdrew support for Infantino without explicitly calling for him to step down, one step short of Norway's position.
- Mexico's football federation broke ranks with Concacaf to back Infantino, while Conmebol president Alejandro Dominguez said "we stand with Gianni" at the inauguration of Colombia's new president Abelardo de la Espriella.
- The crisis was triggered by Infantino's aborted Fifa Forward Enterprise proposal, which offered all 211 associations $40m (£30m) to back private investment stakes in the men's and women's World Cups.
- Klaveness cited concerns including the inaugural FIFA peace prize awarded to Donald Trump in December and the overturning of American forward Folarin Balogun's ban after a phone call from Trump.
- Uefa called the FFE proposal a "shabby, back room, opaque deal" and warned a World Cup boycott could still proceed despite the plan's withdrawal.
- Infantino remains eligible for a fourth term at the March 18, 2027 election in Rabat; the candidate deadline is November 18 and he retains near-unanimous backing from Africa's 54 member associations.
Why it matters: Infantino's survival math rests on the 156 votes outside Europe — Africa (54), Asia (46), Concacaf (35), South America (10), Oceania (11) — where his FIFA Forward funding program ($8m per association, a 30% increase on the prior cycle) has built durable loyalty. A unified 55-vote Uefa bloc cannot block his re-election alone, and opponents have until November 18 to field a challenger.
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