Infantino on Brink After FIFA Investment Backlash
Get the Sports newsletter
Daily sports — scores, transfers, the storylines from the leagues you actually follow. Free.
- Infantino tried to sell stakes in FIFA competitions to private investment firms without others' knowledge, triggering a 24-hour backlash from UEFA, Concacaf, and the Asian Football Confederation
- UEFA threatened to boycott all FIFA competitions including the World Cup, then declared it had "lost confidence" in Infantino after his Saturday morning backtrack
- Concacaf called for a "full review" into FIFA leadership while two of Infantino's closest allies — senior adviser Carlos Cordeiro and chief operating officer Kevin Lamour — publicly abandoned him
- A vote of no confidence requires 106 of 211 member association votes; an emergency FIFA Council meeting can be triggered if 19 of 37 council members request one, though BBC Sport notes doubts the threshold is reachable
- The candidacy deadline to challenge Infantino at his March re-election is November 18, with Concacaf president Victor Montagliani and AFC president Sheikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa named as likely successors
- Qatar, Morocco, and Egypt have publicly backed Infantino since his backtrack, even though 136 countries originally rejected the investment plan — Qatar and Mexico have since softened their opposition
Why it matters: UEFA's 55 votes alone can trigger an extraordinary congress, but removing Infantino requires 106 votes from 211 associations. Qatar, Morocco, and Egypt have already publicly backed him since his backtrack, meaning the 136 countries who rejected the plan may not all vote to oust him when push comes to shove. With a March re-election and an November 18 candidacy deadline, Infantino has months to rebuild support before any no-confidence vote crystallizes.
