The President of the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA), Gianni Infantino, confirmed that he has the support of the "overwhelming majority" of the global football community, and was met with laughter by questions about whether he had considered resigning, against the backdrop of the controversy sparked by a project to sell part of the commercial rights to FIFA tournaments.
In a rare interview with BBC Sport, Infantino appeared defiant when asked about his future as president of the International Federation, after the controversy raised by the “FIFA Forward Enterprise” (FFE) project, and he acknowledged that bringing different points of view “under one roof” is not always easy.
He said: "There is no harm in disagreement. We see this daily in many countries of the world. There is nothing wrong with us disagreeing and having different views, but then we have to be able to move forward."
Two months ago, Infantino faced growing calls to step down as president of FIFA, which he has led since 2016.
The presidents of the European Football Association (UEFA), the Asian Football Confederation, and CONCACAF, which governs the game in North and Central America, signed a letter in which they accused the FIFA president of undermining trust “through deception.”
Last week, UEFA asked FIFA to disclose all basic documents related to the “FIFA Forward Enterprise” project by November 2, after its Secretary General, Theodore Theodoridis, said that the international federation had not provided answers to “a number of fundamental questions.”
The project, which was canceled by Infantino a few days after its launch, was to sell part of the commercial rights to tournaments organized by FIFA to a private investment company.
Since sending the message, Infantino has intensified his international tours, visiting Morocco, the Dominican Republic, Cape Verde, and Japan, and was able to strengthen support for his position, to the point where his re-election for a fourth term next year seems almost settled.
He also proposed increasing funding allocated to football development around the world by $3.4 billion.
During the interview, Infantino indicated that he had received “full support” from the Asian Football Confederation, after its president, Sheikh Salman bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa, changed his previous position, in addition to the support of “all African countries” for him.
But just last week, Infantino apologized to the FIFA Council for the way he “communicated and consulted” regarding the “FIFA Forward Enterprise” project.
During the meeting, members of the Council informed him that he was “not fit to lead FIFA” if he did not hand over to them the documents they requested, including the justifications on which the project was based.
When the BBC pressed him to know when these documents would be submitted, he did not give a clear answer, saying only that the matter required following “legal procedures” and that work on them was “still underway.”
He said: “We will, of course, answer all the questions asked, to the extent that the procedures allow, and to the best of our ability.”
Speaking from Azerbaijan, where the first edition of the Under-15 World Cup is being held, Infantino said that he and the FIFA administration were doing their “best,” but acknowledged that they had done “some things that were perhaps not good enough.”
He added that there was a need to conduct dialogue with the European Football Association “at a greater pace” in an attempt to repair the tense relationship between the two parties.
When the BBC asked him whether he saw himself as qualified to be president of FIFA, and whether he had considered stepping down from his position, he laughed before answering: “Well, as you know, I was elected by 211 member associations from all over the world.”
He added: "I think what is important is that in an organization like FIFA, there can be different opinions and points of view."
He continued: "But if we are serious about our belief in democracy and the democratic process, and that everyone has the same voice and the same right to vote wherever they are in the world, and that football belongs to everyone, then we must also respect the opinion of the overwhelming majority."
He said: "I have just returned from Tokyo, where the Asian Football Confederation gave me its full support. I was in Cape Verde, where I had the support of all the African federations. I am in contact with federations around the world."
He added: "There are different points of view, and it is not always easy to gather them all under one roof. But we have to respect them, and I respect all opinions and points of view. In the end, it is up to the member associations of FIFA to decide who they want as their president, and how they want the international federation to be managed."
The deadline for submitting candidacy applications to compete with Infantino in the elections scheduled for next March ends on November 18.
No candidate has come forward so far, which opens the door to the possibility of Infantino running in the elections without a competitor.
Infantino arrived on Friday in the Azerbaijani capital, Baku, to attend the World Cup and the FIFA U-15 Festival, which is hosted by Azerbaijan with the participation of teams representing 189 member associations.
Among the participating teams are England, Spain, France, Argentina and Brazil.
Russia is also participating with a national team for the first time in a FIFA-sanctioned tournament, since FIFA and UEFA suspended the participation of Russian teams in international competitions in February 2022, following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The current edition of the tournament is limited to boys’ teams, with next year’s edition being allocated to girls’ teams, while FIFA plans to organize annual competitions for boys and girls starting in 2028.
