UEFA said it has "lost confidence" in Gianni Infantino's presidency. Now the English FA has made it official: it's withdrawing its support for the FIFA president, and it's told him so in writing.
The FA had previously backed Infantino for re-election as recently as March. That position collapsed after Infantino floated a proposal to privatise 20% of the World Cup and other FIFA-organised competitions — a plan that went down badly enough to fracture alliances he'd spent years building. Wales, Serbia, Finland and Sweden have also flipped, all now opposing a candidate they once endorsed.
More than a disagreement over one proposal
UEFA's response has been anything but diplomatic. Europe's governing body threatened to have its national teams boycott future FIFA competitions — World Cups included — unless major reforms are made. Getting Infantino out appears to be at the top of that reform list.
FIFA held an emergency meeting in Rabat on Wednesday and issued a statement reaffirming the Management Board's support for Infantino, while also acknowledging that "mistakes were made." An apology to member associations was included. UEFA was not impressed.
"Yesterday's announcement that some people employed by the FIFA President — and whose careers depend on his favour — agree with him changes nothing," UEFA said. Blunt, but hard to argue with as a characterisation of the situation.
What this means beyond the politics
Strip away the governance language and this is a straightforward power struggle over who controls the commercial future of international football — including the World Cup, the single most-watched sporting event on the planet. Any significant structural change to how that tournament is owned or monetised would have cascading effects on everything from broadcast rights to qualifying formats.
The fact that Concacaf has also sided with UEFA signals this isn't just a European revolt. Infantino is facing opposition from confederations covering most of the footballing world. Whether that translates into actual consequences — a formal vote, a removal process — is still unclear. But the FA's letter to FIFA is now on record, and UEFA's position remains unchanged.
