UEFA declares no confidence in Infantino, vows accountability for failed World Cup equity plan

European soccer body UEFA has declared a lack of confidence in FIFA President Gianni Infantino, signaling a significant power struggle in global football politics following the withdrawal of Infantino's plan to sell World Cup profits to private investors.

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No option should be off the table. The current FIFA leadership has not only lost UEFA’s confidence but also that of many other members of the football family.

Infantino's proposal, which aimed to create a $20 billion company to manage the World Cup with private equity, faced widespread opposition. UEFA, along with soccer confederations from North America and Asia, strongly opposed the plan, deeming it secretive and potentially detrimental to the sport. The backlash intensified after a senior FIFA adviser resigned and Asian soccer's governing body joined the chorus of disapproval.

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Having listened carefully to all the views, it has become clear that the project has created divisions of a nature that, regardless of the level of support, are no longer in the interest of the objective set out in the first place.

On Friday, Infantino announced the withdrawal of the proposal, stating it had created divisions and was no longer in the best interest of the game. "Our purpose has always been - and will always be - to unite and improve," he said in a statement. "As a result, this proposal will not proceed."

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We cannot keep going on like this with secret schemes on fast-track timescales, cooked up by faceless individuals and of dubious benefit to the game. We must identify those responsible and hold them to account.

UEFA issued a scathing statement hours after FIFA's announcement, vowing to identify and hold accountable those behind the "secret schemes." The organization stated it would work with its member associations and other confederations to reflect on how the situation occurred and to ensure it does not happen again. Norwegian soccer federation president Lise Klaveness emphasized the need to protect the sport's integrity, noting that international football cooperation was unnecessarily jeopardized for individual interests rather than the game's best interests.

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The entire framework of international football cooperation was unnecessarily put at risk in pursuit of individual interests rather than the best interests of the game.