Six Arab football federations backed Gianni Infantino on Thursday, giving the FIFA president a show of support as opposition to his leadership grows following the collapse of a controversial private investment plan involving the World Cup.
The federations of Morocco, Qatar, Egypt, Mauritania, Lebanon and Sudan said they had “full support” and “confidence” in Infantino and praised his efforts to expand the global reach of the sport.
“We, the undersigned leaders of our respective football associations, express our full support for Mr. Gianni Infantino, President of FIFA, and reaffirm our confidence in his leadership and continued commitment to the development of football worldwide,” the federations said in a joint statement.
The statement also praised Infantino for advancing football in different regions and strengthening its role in bringing communities together.
The endorsement came as Infantino faces his most serious challenge to his leadership since becoming FIFA president in 2016. He is seeking a fourth term at next year’s FIFA Congress in Morocco and had appeared certain to win re-election unopposed before the dispute over the investment proposal triggered a backlash across several confederations.
Four of the six Arab federation presidents who signed the statement are members of the FIFA Council: Qatar’s Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, Egypt’s Hany Abo Rida, Morocco’s Fouzi Lekjaa and Mauritania’s Ahmed Yahya. The other signatories were Lebanese Football Association president Hashem Haidar and Sudan Football Association president Moatasem Gafar.
Morocco will co-host the 2030 World Cup, while Qatar staged the 2022 tournament.
The latest support contrasts sharply with the growing opposition from several of FIFA’s regional confederations.
UEFA, the Asian Football Confederation and CONCACAF, which represents North and Central America and the Caribbean, have called for greater scrutiny of Infantino’s leadership after FIFA withdrew its plan to bring private investment into the commercial rights of its competitions.
The proposal, known as FIFA Forward Enterprise, would have involved selling a 20% stake in World Cup commercial rights to private investors. FIFA had estimated that the plan could raise about $4.2 billion.
The proposal also included a $20 million payment to each member association during the next funding cycle, with that amount potentially doubling for federations that agreed to participate.
The plan was withdrawn after widespread criticism, including an open letter from UEFA, the AFC and CONCACAF that described the proposal as a “fundamental breach of trust” and accused FIFA of “deception.”
FIFA subsequently apologized to its 211 member associations for the way the proposal had been handled and said its leadership retained full support for Infantino.
But the fallout has continued.
The Football Association of Ireland said Thursday it had withdrawn its support for Infantino’s re-election, citing concerns over governance, transparency and the lack of meaningful consultation.
England and Wales had already withdrawn their backing, while Northern Ireland said it supported UEFA’s position.
New Zealand Football became the latest national federation to break ranks with its regional confederation, announcing Friday that it had withdrawn its support for Infantino and was calling for an independent review of the abandoned investment plan.
“We’ve called for an independent review specifically because what we don’t want to see is a sort of in-house quick washover of this,” New Zealand Football chief executive Andrew Pragnell told Reuters.
“An independent review is something else that has been called for by other confederations that will help restore some of the trust.”
New Zealand, the only Oceania Football Confederation member to qualify for this year’s World Cup, said the review should examine how the investment proposal was developed, who was involved and how decisions were overseen.
Pragnell also said the review should examine the proposed involvement of Thrive Capital, a U.S. investment firm with family ties to President Donald Trump, in the venture.
“I think the scope needs to be considered really carefully, but what’s most important is that all confederations should agree on the scope, and it needs to get underway with urgency,” Pragnell said.
The Oceania Football Confederation, however, stopped short of criticizing Infantino personally.
The OFC welcomed FIFA’s decision to abandon the proposal and said the organization should use the review to identify any changes needed while recognizing what it described as significant progress in developing football across the region during Infantino’s tenure.
The split highlights the increasingly complicated battle for support ahead of the FIFA presidential election.
The three confederations opposing or questioning Infantino represent 136 of FIFA’s 211 member associations, giving them significant influence over the March election. At the same time, Infantino retains powerful allies.
The Confederation of African Football’s executive committee unanimously reaffirmed its support for him, although that decision does not guarantee that all 54 African federations will vote as a bloc.
Several Arab federations have also continued to publicly back the FIFA president, while Infantino’s official Instagram account has previously featured letters of support from Morocco, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.
Qatar and Lebanon’s latest endorsement puts them at odds with the AFC, whose leadership has joined UEFA and CONCACAF in demanding greater scrutiny of FIFA’s handling of the investment proposal.
Australia, another AFC member, has also called for an independent review without publicly taking a position on whether Infantino should remain FIFA president.
FIFA has set Nov. 18 as the deadline for candidates to enter the presidential race.
Infantino, who succeeded Sepp Blatter in 2016, has been widely expected to secure a fourth term. The growing number of federations withdrawing their support, however, has transformed what once appeared to be a routine re-election campaign into an increasingly contested fight over FIFA’s leadership, governance and financial direction.
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