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Divided World Football: European, Asian, and North American Federations Criticize Infantino
🇰🇷 South Korea /Sports

Divided World Football: European, Asian, and North American Federations Criticize Infantino

From Dong-A Ilbo · () Korean

Translated from Korean, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Context piece
  • Three continental football confederations, UEFA, AFC, and CONCACAF, issued a joint statement criticizing FIFA President Gianni Infantino's leadership.
  • The statement, titled 'Open Letter to the Football Family,' argued that football belongs to no single person or institution.
  • The dispute intensified with former U.S. President Donald Trump publicly supporting Infantino, highlighting his close relationship with the FIFA president.

The global football community is divided over FIFA President Gianni Infantino, with a significant rift emerging between continental confederations and drawing in former U.S. President Donald Trump. The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), and the Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF) jointly released an open letter directly challenging Infantino's recent actions.

Football does not belong to any individual or specific institution.

— UEFA, AFC, CONCACAFIn their joint 'Open Letter to the Football Family' criticizing FIFA President Gianni Infantino's leadership.

Titled 'Open Letter to the Football Family,' the statement declared that "football does not belong to any individual or specific institution." This public rebuke follows FIFA's controversial plan to establish a subsidiary, 'FIFA Forward Enterprises' (FFE), to manage major tournament revenues and sell stakes to private investors, a plan later rescinded due to widespread backlash.

We call for leadership that serves football, not leadership that seeks to dominate it.

— UEFA, AFC, CONCACAFIn their joint 'Open Letter to the Football Family' criticizing FIFA President Gianni Infantino's leadership.

The three confederations emphasized that FIFA's growth over the past decade is a collective achievement, not the work of one person. They called for "leadership that serves football, not leadership that seeks to dominate it." In response, Donald Trump voiced his support for Infantino via Truth Social, calling any move to replace him a "terrible mistake" and praising his stewardship of the World Cup tournaments.

If FIFA replaces Infantino for any reason, it would be a terrible mistake.

— Donald TrumpPublicly supporting FIFA President Gianni Infantino via Truth Social.

Infantino has maintained support from the South American Football Confederation (CONMEBOL) and the Confederation of African Football (CAF). According to Hosin Karja, a Moroccan football legend and FIFA's Director for the Middle East and North Africa region, the core of the conflict lies in a perceived threat to Europe's historical dominance in football. Infantino's close ties with Trump include awarding him the inaugural 'FIFA Peace Prize' during preparations for the 2026 World Cup, a tournament whose potential equity sale was reportedly to be led by a venture capital firm associated with Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner.

Infantino has led the most successful tournaments in the history of the World Cup.

— Donald TrumpPublicly supporting FIFA President Gianni Infantino via Truth Social.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Dong-A Ilbo in Korean. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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