FIFA vice-president softens position on Gianni Infantino and proposes internal working group for reforms

The president of the Asian Football Confederation appears to have softened his stance toward Gianni Infantino and FIFA reforms in a letter addressed to the controversial FIFA president.

Previously, Sheikh Salman bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa had strongly criticized Infantino, suggesting he should resign following the failure of Infantino's "FIFA Forward Executive" (FFE) plan.

However, according to The Athletic, Salman appears to have shifted his position in a letter written to Infantino on Tuesday and shared with other confederation presidents, including Ceferin and Montagliani, suggesting they "constructively consider whether FIFA's existing governance arrangements could be strengthened."

In the letter, the AFC president expressed his opposition to a "complete overhaul of FIFA's governance system," instead proposing a working group to examine existing governing bodies rather than outsourcing the process to external entities—despite previously co-signing a letter with UEFA and CONCACAF stating that any review should be conducted by a "fully independent third party."

"There have been many discussions and reports in recent months concerning FIFA's governance, transparency, decision-making processes, and institutional controls," Salman said in the letter.

"We should examine whether the respective roles of existing bodies are sufficiently clear, whether the distribution of power among them is appropriate, and whether necessary checks function as effectively in practice as they do on paper.

"The confederations and FIFA itself possess considerable relevant experience and expertise, and I therefore believe this process should be led by football institutions themselves, rather than being outsourced to external bodies."

FIFA and the AFC were contacted for comment.

Salman's proposal comes just over a week before the FIFA Council meeting in Zurich on October 15—the first since Infantino's FFE plan was revealed, which would grant private investors a 20% stake in FIFA's commercial and event operations—placing Infantino under intense global scrutiny.

Multiple stakeholders, including UEFA, subsequently called for Infantino's resignation, triggering global outcry, though opinions within the AFC under Salman's leadership were divided.

While the Royal Moroccan Football Federation was among the first to publicly support the FIFA president, the Jordanian Football Association, by contrast, expressed "grave concern" and accused world football's governing body of attempting to "blackmail" it into supporting Infantino's re-election bid.

Infantino, who has held the position since 2016, remains the sole candidate for next year's presidential election.

Traduit par IA.

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