Gianni Infantino's grip on the Fifa presidency is under serious strain after a botched attempt to push through the Fifa Forward Enterprise (FFE) scheme triggered a wave of withdrawn support across football's governing bodies. With several national associations pulling their backing for his re-election, the question of whether an actual contest will emerge now hinges on how each of Fifa's six confederations positions itself.
Uefa has emerged as the clearest opponent, having threatened to boycott Fifa competitions entirely if the FFE plan went ahead. In a pointed statement, the European body said Infantino's leadership had "not only lost Uefa's confidence, but also that of many other members of the football family," vowing to pursue change. Notably, both the English and Welsh football associations have rescinded their letters supporting Infantino's re-election, part of a broader European effort to erode his standing beyond recovery.
The Asian Football Confederation, historically one of Infantino's most reliable blocs, finds itself divided. While the AFC has criticised the World Cup proposal more sharply than usual and called for governance reform, most individual member federations remain reluctant to see him replaced. AFC president Sheikh Salman, who lost to Infantino in the 2016 election, has generally maintained unity within the confederation, though Gulf powers such as Qatar, the UAE and Saudi Arabia continue to back the incumbent, complicating any unified Asian stance.
Concacaf has taken arguably the strongest stance outside Uefa. A statement representing the confederation's 41 members branded the FFE plan "a symptom of leadership that has stopped putting football first" and described it as a "unilateral and egregious act of poor governance," adding that "a comprehensive reckoning with this presidency is imperative." The intervention carries added significance given that Concacaf president Victor Montagliani, also a Fifa vice-president, is widely seen as a potential successor should Infantino's position collapse.
By contrast, the Confederation of African Football has stood firmly behind the status quo. CAF president Patrice Motsepe stated that all 54 member associations unanimously support Infantino's re-election, which is scheduled to take place in Morocco next year. Many African federations remain financially dependent on Fifa grants, a dynamic that has shaped the continent's historically compliant relationship with Zurich.
South America's Conmebol has adopted a notably cautious posture, issuing only a brief statement requesting further clarification on the FFE proposal before falling silent. According to football industry consultant Marina Mendez, "Conmebol's current position is best described as cautious support rather than open confrontation... Conmebol's approach is pragmatic: it is protecting South American football's access, influence and negotiating position within Fifa." Argentina and Brazil remain central to that calculation, with most smaller Conmebol nations expected to follow their lead.
Oceania's stance remains the least defined. New Zealand voiced early opposition to the World Cup proposal, though the Oceania Football Confederation itself has stopped short of a formal position, and support for Infantino persists among several of its 11 members, many of whom rely heavily on Fifa funding.
Financially, the confederations vary enormously in their dependence on Fifa. Uefa, buoyed by Champions League revenues nearly double Fifa's own income, has little need for Infantino's largesse. Concacaf and the AFC, meanwhile, contain a mix of wealthy nations and smaller federations for whom Fifa grants are essential — Bhutan, for instance, receives $1.5m annually, forming the bulk of its budget.
Whether this simmering discontent translates into a genuine electoral challenge remains uncertain. As one unnamed industry insider put it, the coming vote could be framed as "Uefa versus footballistic populism," while Mendez suggested the underlying dynamic is less about ethics than raw political leverage: "It's not a simple case of morality, it's a power struggle."
Based on reporting from The Guardian.