A significant political rift has emerged in global football as three of the sport's most influential confederations—UEFA, the AFC, and CONCACAF—have released a joint open letter. The statement levels direct accusations against FIFA president Gianni Infantino, claiming he has failed the collective trust of the football community and positioned himself above the sport itself.
The primary catalyst for this confrontation was FIFA’s attempt to sell commercial stakes in the World Cup. According to the confederations, this proposal was pushed through without proper debate or scrutiny, effectively bypassing the federations. While FIFA attempted to frame the controversy as a “communication error,” the signatory organizations categorically rejected this explanation, characterizing the incident as a serious lapse in judgment and a deliberate deception of the collective.
The confederations highlighted several irregularities, most notably a secret meeting held in Morocco. This gathering reportedly included only FIFA employees and excluded elected representatives of the FIFA Council. In response to these events, the three organizations are calling for an independent, external investigation, arguing that the FIFA administration should have no role in reviewing its own conduct.
In their statement, the groups emphasized that football is a shared passion belonging to players, fans, clubs, and member associations rather than any single individual. They noted that the progress made over the last decade, including the expansion of tournaments and the awarding of the 2030 and 2034 World Cups, resulted from collective effort. The confederations clarified that their stance is not about money, but rather about the integrity of the game and its leadership. They expressed concern that FIFA’s recent actions reflect a pattern of behavior where leadership views itself as a commander rather than a servant of the football family.
The letter further criticized the lack of transparency, pointing out that FIFA’s own correspondence confirmed only one elected official was present at the Morocco meeting. The confederations maintain that proper governance requires accountability and that the current leadership has failed to meet these standards. They are demanding that all relevant documents be preserved according to UEFA’s communication protocols as they push for a return to a model of unity and service. This recent meeting, in which a select number of members of the FIFA Management Committee —not the Committee as a whole— was convened abroad, instead of leadership going to Zurich to address the heart of FIFA, its staff, only reinforces these concerns and represents a continuation of the same pattern of conduct that has brought us to this moment. It is not the conduct of a custodian of the game, but of someone who believes the game should answer to him.
This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.
FIFA’s recent letter to its Vice Presidents and the 211 Member Associations acknowledges that mistakes were made in the process. It treats this as a communication failure, when what football witnessed was a failure of judgment. A proposal presented on a compressed timeline, without meaningful consultation, and pushed t
