Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said he has no confidence in Gianni Infantino's leadership of FIFA, while Portugal legend Luís Figo called for the president to resign over a plan to sell World Cup stakes to private investors.
Key facts
- Mark Carney said he has 'no confidence' in Gianni Infantino's leadership of FIFA.
- Luís Figo called on Infantino to stand down 'to save football'.
- At issue is a plan to sell stakes in the World Cup to private investors.
- FIFA executive members backed Infantino at an emergency meeting in Morocco.
- Carney is close to Concacaf president Victor Montagliani, tipped as a possible challenger.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said on Wednesday that he has no confidence in Gianni Infantino’s leadership of FIFA, according to the Guardian, adding to a difficult day for the football body’s president.
The intervention came as the Portugal legend Luís Figo called for Infantino to resign. Figo said the president should stand down ‘to save football’, describing the plan to sell off stakes in the World Cup to private investors as ‘the lowest, most deceitful and cravenly self-interested behaviour I have ever witnessed’.
Carney, the former governor of the Bank of England, was more measured in his language but characterised the abortive sell-off scheme as ‘fatal’, according to the Guardian.
The Guardian reported that Carney’s intervention could be more significant than Figo’s because he is close to the Concacaf president, Victor Montagliani, who is being urged to run against Infantino in next year’s FIFA presidential election.
Despite the mounting criticism, FIFA rallied around its president. Al Jazeera reported that Infantino received the support of executive members at an emergency meeting held in Morocco.
The developments leave Infantino facing public pressure from a serving head of government and a prominent former player, even as the organisation’s leadership publicly backed him.
Why it matters
The dispute pits a proposal to bring private investors into the World Cup against critics who see it as a threat to the sport's integrity. With a FIFA presidential election due next year and a possible challenger in the wings, the row could shape who leads world football and how its biggest tournament is financed.
Frequently asked questions
What did Mark Carney say about Gianni Infantino?
Carney, the Canadian prime minister and former Bank of England governor, said he had no confidence in Infantino's leadership of FIFA and described the abortive World Cup sell-off scheme as 'fatal', according to the Guardian.
Why is Luís Figo calling for Infantino to resign?
Figo said Infantino should stand down 'to save football', calling the plan to sell stakes in the World Cup to private investors 'the lowest, most deceitful and cravenly self-interested behaviour I have ever witnessed'.
Did FIFA support Infantino?
Yes. Al Jazeera reported that Infantino received the backing of executive members at an emergency meeting in Morocco.