The president of African football’s governing body has insisted that Gianni Infantino’s future as FIFA chief should be settled through the electoral process, not by pressure campaigns. Patrice Motsepe, who heads the Confederation of African Football (CAF) and serves as a FIFA vice president, made the remarks as the embattled Swiss official faces a wave of criticism over a shelved plan to sell stakes in the World Cup to private investors.
Speaking to Sky News on Thursday, Motsepe said anyone unhappy with Infantino should follow FIFA’s established procedures. “If you want to take him out, go for elections; let the 211 member associations decide,” he said. “Do that and the vote will express whether they’ve got confidence in him or not.” He added that there are elections taking place next year and asked: “Shouldn’t we allow that process to continue?”
The comments come after the governing bodies of European, North and Central American, and Asian football issued a joint letter this week declaring that “trust is broken through deception, when an individual places himself above the collective that entrusted him with authority.” The letter is widely seen as an attempt to push Infantino to resign before he can seek re-election in March next year.
Motsepe was in Salzburg on Wednesday for talks with UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin, whose organisation has threatened to boycott the World Cup and Club World Cup in protest over Infantino’s abandoned investment scheme. Motsepe urged caution, saying he has “heard so many stories about various issues” and is careful about passing judgement. He called for a proper hearing, noting that “everybody has a right to be heard.”
CAF has already publicly backed Infantino, and Motsepe argued that the World Cup sell-off talks did not breach FIFA rules because any proposals would still need approval from member associations. He acknowledged that “there’s a lot that’s problematic and negative that they have to fix,” but pointed out that Infantino has apologised and indicated a willingness to change approach.
Despite that defence, pressure continued to mount on Thursday when the Football Association of Ireland (FAI) became the latest member to withdraw its support. The FAI said it had rescinded its earlier letter of support, citing “significant concerns regarding governance, transparency and the lack of meaningful consultation.” The English and Welsh football associations had already withdrawn their backing, while six Arab federations, including Qatar, Morocco and Egypt, offered fresh support to Infantino on Thursday morning.