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🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates /Sports

Infantino to seek re-election as Fifa president despite World Cup controversy

From Khaleej Times · () English

Summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

News Official statement New plan
  • Gianni Infantino will seek a fourth and final term as FIFA president in next March's election, despite backlash over an abandoned private-investment plan for FIFA events.
  • UEFA has accused Infantino of "criminal mismanagement" and is pursuing documents in the United States that could support a legal complaint in Switzerland.
  • CONCACAF President Victor Montagliani is viewed as the likeliest challenger, while Saudi Arabia, CAF and CONMEBOL have backed Infantino.

Gianni Infantino will stand for a fourth and final term as FIFA president, even after the collapse of a plan that triggered an open revolt among powerful football confederations. FIFA reiterated his intention to run in next March's election, saying nothing had changed since he announced his candidacy in April.

Leadership in football is not a possession. It is not about holding, or demanding, power to be held.

· UEFA, CONCACAF and the Asian Football ConfederationThe three confederations used the line in a joint letter criticizing Infantino's leadership.

The 56-year-old Swiss has faced intense criticism since late July, when FIFA's short-lived FIFA Forward Enterprise plan proposed bringing private investment into FIFA events. The organization abandoned the scheme, but the backlash has continued. Infantino was in Poland for the Women's Under-20 World Cup and declined to answer journalists' questions about his future on Saturday.

UEFA has accused him of "criminal mismanagement" over the plan and initially threatened to boycott all FIFA competitions, including the men's and women's World Cups. UEFA withdrew that threat on Aug. 27, but the European body continues to insist that Infantino should leave office. It has sought the disclosure in the United States of documents involving FIFA and its partners. If it obtains them, UEFA says it plans to file a legal complaint in Switzerland.

criminal mismanagement

· UEFAUEFA's characterization of Infantino's handling of the private-investment plan.

UEFA has also won support from CONCACAF and the Asian Football Confederation. The three bodies issued a joint letter last month declaring, "Leadership in football is not a possession. It is not about holding, or demanding, power to be held." FIFA, for its part, has accused UEFA of conducting a "smear campaign" and a "fishing expedition."

smear campaign

· FIFAFIFA's accusation against UEFA over its actions targeting Infantino.

CONCACAF President Victor Montagliani is widely regarded as Infantino's most likely challenger, while UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin has ruled himself out. Infantino retains support from Saudi Arabia, host of the 2034 World Cup, as well as Africa's CAF and South America's CONMEBOL. If re-elected, he would remain FIFA president until 2031.

fishing expedition

· FIFAFIFA's description of UEFA's requests for documents related to the abandoned plan.
About this summary

Originally published by Khaleej Times. Summarized and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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