“FIFA” Confirms Infantino Will Run for Another Presidential Term in 2027

Al-Taj News – A spokesperson for the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) confirmed Saturday that Gianni Infantino, who has served as the federation’s president since 2016, will run for re-election in 2027, despite the controversy sparked by his announcement of an abandoned project to open the door to private-sector investors.

The spokesperson said: “The FIFA president announced in April that he would run for re-election in 2027. Of course, nothing has changed. Mr. Infantino will run for re-election.”

The FIFA presidency is limited to three terms.

In 2022, Infantino successfully argued that his first term, which began after his election at an extraordinary congress in 2016 following Sepp Blatter’s resignation, should not count toward this limit because it was the completion of an unexpired term.

The confirmation of his candidacy, which had previously been reported by several English media outlets, comes as the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and other continental confederations, along with a number of national associations, have criticized the management of the Swiss-Italian, who quickly withdrew his project.

The football world is sharply divided over Infantino’s management style, which his critics consider opaque, accusing him of developing a plan without consultation to place World Cup revenues in a commercial company open to private-sector investors.

At the beginning of August, the European UEFA, North and Central American and Caribbean CONCACAF, and Asian continental confederations sent a joint letter to the “football family,” expressing their rejection of the FIFA president’s approach.

In contrast, Infantino received “unanimous” support from the Confederation of African Football (CAF), as well as support from part of the South American Football Confederation (CONMEBOL), along with other associations, former players and political figures, including U.S. President Donald Trump.

Infantino had surprised the football community at the beginning of August by announcing his intention to establish an offshore company called “FIFA Forward Enterprise” to manage the international federation’s commercial activities and major tournaments such as the World Cup, while opening the door to private-sector investors. However, the project was quickly withdrawn in the face of widespread opposition from various stakeholders in football.