World football's growing rift over Gianni Infantino's leadership deepened this week after the football federations of Mexico and Argentina publicly declared their support for the embattled Fifa president, breaking with parts of their own regional confederations in the process.
The dispute stems from a now-abandoned Fifa plan to sell off commercial rights to the World Cup, a proposal that triggered fierce backlash from several confederations and national federations and cast doubt over Infantino's bid for a fourth term as Fifa president in elections scheduled for March.
The Mexican Football Federation (FMF), which co-hosted the recent World Cup, notably diverged from Concacaf, its own confederation, which had demanded a thorough review of Fifa's governance following the controversy. In a statement, the FMF said it would not recognise any process convened outside official channels and pledged support for Infantino's continued leadership.
"The FMF is convinced that football's best defence lies in institutional integrity and respect for the governance and processes that safeguard it," the federation said, adding that it backed "President Infantino's leadership in continuing to promote the development of football through institutional strengthening."
Argentina's federation, the AFA, went further in its praise, issuing a statement that credited Infantino for withdrawing the controversial proposal and acknowledging mistakes in how it was handled. The AFA said the decision to scrap the plan had removed a source of "far more uncertainties than certainties" and welcomed what it described as a sincere apology from Infantino to Fifa's 211 member associations.
"Prioritising governance standards is a fundamental pillar for strengthening good relations between Fifa, its member associations and the confederations," the AFA statement read, adding that Infantino's decade in charge had been built on "a model of transparent governance, respect for statutory structures and the monitoring of democratic procedures." The federation concluded that the way forward was to continue working under his leadership.
South America's Conmebol, while also broadly supportive of Infantino, struck a more cautious tone, voicing concern over what it called "repeated unilateral actions taken without resorting to dialogue or the institutional mechanisms" designed to handle such matters.
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) added its weight behind Infantino, unanimously reaffirming support for his leadership on Thursday, giving the Fifa president a bloc of significant allies as he seeks to fend off mounting criticism.
However, the backing from Mexico, Argentina, CAF and Conmebol stands in sharp contrast to the stance taken by Uefa, which has maintained that its conditions for restoring confidence in Infantino have not been met, despite the withdrawal of the World Cup rights proposal. Uefa previously labelled the plan a "shabby, back room, opaque deal" and said assurances were needed that such moves would never be attempted again.
Concacaf, despite Mexico's break from the pack, has also criticised Infantino, describing the proposal as symptomatic of leadership that had "stopped putting football first" and part of a broader pattern of governance missteps, though it stopped short of declaring it had lost confidence in him outright. The Asian Football Confederation has expressed solidarity with Uefa and Concacaf in opposing the plan.
Several national federations, including England, Wales, Albania and Croatia, have also withdrawn their support for Infantino, with Croatia citing a "thorough reassessment" following recent developments. Players' union Fifpro was especially critical, calling the episode a "profound abuse of presidential power" rather than a mere governance failure.
Fifa has apologised for what it described as mistakes in process and communication surrounding the proposal, while insisting no governance rules were breached. With no clear rival candidate having emerged, Infantino's path to a fourth term, once considered all but assured, now appears considerably more uncertain amid the confederation split.
Based on reporting from The Guardian, The Independent, and BBC Sport.