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Mexico, Argentina Back Infantino as FIFA Fight Rages on
🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia /Sports

Mexico, Argentina Back Infantino as FIFA Fight Rages on

From Asharq Al-Awsat · () English

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

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  • Mexico and Argentina's football federations have publicly backed FIFA President Gianni Infantino amid controversy over a proposed sale of World Cup commercial rights.
  • This support contrasts with stances from CONCACAF and UEFA, though CAF has also backed Infantino.
  • FIFA has apologized for the proposal and pledged to review its processes, while Infantino faces a potential challenge for re-election in March.

Mexico and Argentina's football associations have declared their support for FIFA President Gianni Infantino, positioning themselves against a growing backlash concerning a now-scrapped plan to sell off commercial rights to the World Cup. The Mexican Football Federation (FMF), which co-hosted the recent World Cup, has notably diverged from its regional body, CONCACAF, by endorsing Infantino.

While the Confederation of African Football (CAF) has also unanimously backed Infantino's leadership, other confederations have expressed reservations. UEFA, European soccer's governing body, remains committed to boycotting FIFA events. Asia's confederation has aligned itself with UEFA and CONCACAF. However, CONMEBOL, representing South America, issued a statement rejecting any attempts to oust Infantino that bypass a vote of all 211 member nations, a sentiment echoed by Mexico's federation.

The FMF will neither recognize nor approve any process convened outside of that institutional framework, and it joins the call made ... by President Infantino to collectively continue developing football for the benefit of the 211 member associations.

— Mexican Football Federation (FMF)The FMF stated its position on the FIFA leadership controversy.

The FMF stated it would not recognize any process outside the established institutional framework and supports Infantino's call to collectively advance football. Argentina's football association (AFA) similarly expressed support for FIFA's work over the past decade, emphasizing its focus on global football development and institutional strength. While acknowledging errors were made regarding the commercial rights proposal, the AFA believes continued work under FIFA's leadership is the way forward.

FIFA has since apologized to its members for the controversy surrounding the proposal and committed to reviewing the decision-making processes. This incident has cast a shadow over Infantino's bid for a fourth term as FIFA president in the upcoming March election. Despite the backlash, no clear challenger has emerged, and Infantino retains significant support, including from the 2022 World Cup champions, Argentina.

The FMF supports President Infantino's leadership in continuing to promote the development of football through institutional strengthening.

— Mexican Football Federation (FMF)The FMF expressed its backing for Infantino's continued role.
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Originally published by Asharq Al-Awsat. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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