The growing divide in world football has widened as Argentina and Mexico declared support for FIFA's defiant president Gianni Infantino, just a day after Africa unanimously backed him. The endorsements come amid fierce backlash over an abandoned proposal to sell commercial rights to the World Cup and other FIFA events.
Following a meeting in Rabat, FIFA apologized to its members for mistakes around the proposal and pledged to review the processes that led to the controversy, but stood firmly behind its president. Infantino's biggest opponent remains UEFA, which confirmed on Thursday it maintains its boycott vote, with Norway calling for his resignation.
The Mexican Football Federation (FMF), co-host of the 2026 World Cup, broke ranks with its regional confederation CONCACAF by backing Infantino. In a statement, the FMF said it "will neither recognize nor approve any process convened outside of that institutional framework" and supports Infantino's leadership in promoting football development.
Argentina's football association (AFA) also expressed outright support, citing FIFA's work over the last decade focused on development and institutional strength. The AFA acknowledged the proposal generated uncertainties but emphasized the need to continue working under FIFA's leadership ahead of next year's Congress in Morocco.
South America's CONMEBOL rejected any attempt to oust Infantino without a vote of all 211 members, countering UEFA's stance. The Confederation of African Football (CAF) unanimously backed Infantino, giving him a significant bloc of 54 votes to counter UEFA's threat.
Norwegian Football Federation President Lise Klaveness called for Infantino's resignation, stating he lacks the institutional trust to govern FIFA stably. "There is no going back for Gianni Infantino," she said, highlighting the troubled state of international football cooperation.
The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) stood in solidarity with UEFA and CONCACAF, with its president branding FIFA's lack of consultation "totally unacceptable." However, several Asian nations, including Indonesia, Qatar, and the Philippines, have supported Infantino.
Croatia joined England and Albania in withdrawing support, while players' union FIFPRO called the proposal a "profound abuse of presidential power." FIFA maintains all actions complied with regulations, attributing the crisis to process and communication errors rather than governance breaches.
Source: www.aljazeera.com