According to The Athletic, FIFA Vice President and AFC President Sheikh Salman bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa, in a letter sent to Gianni Infantino on October 6, appears to have softened his previous stance demanding Infantino's resignation. Instead, Salman proposed creating an internal working group to study how to strengthen FIFA's existing governance mechanisms.

Salman had previously criticized Infantino sharply, arguing that the Swiss-Italian FIFA President should resign following the failure of his Future of Football (FFE) project. However, a letter seen by The Athletic indicates a shift in Salman's position. In the letter sent to Infantino on Tuesday, Salman suggested that all parties should "constructively explore whether FIFA's existing governance mechanisms can be strengthened." The letter was also copied to other continental federation presidents, including Aleksander Čeferin and Victor Montagliani.

In the letter, Salman indicated he does not favor a "complete overhaul of FIFA's governance system," but instead proposed forming a working group to review existing governance bodies, rather than entrusting the process to external organizations. However, he had previously signed a joint letter with UEFA and CONCACAF explicitly stating that any review should be conducted by "a completely independent third party."

Salman wrote in the letter: "In recent months, there has been extensive discussion and reporting surrounding FIFA's governance, transparency, decision-making processes, and institutional checks and balances."

"We must consider whether the responsibilities of existing bodies are sufficiently clear, whether the distribution of power among the various bodies is appropriate, and whether the necessary checks and balances are not merely theoretical but also effective in practice."

"Continental federations and FIFA itself possess a wealth of relevant experience and knowledge. Therefore, I believe this process should be led by the football bodies themselves, rather than being entrusted to external organizations."

FIFA and the AFC were contacted for comment. Salman's proposal comes just over a week before the FIFA Council meeting scheduled for October 15 in Zurich. This will be the first FIFA Council meeting since the revelation of Infantino's FFE project, which proposed offering 20% of FIFA's commercial and events operations to private investors, putting Infantino under intense global scrutiny.

Subsequently, various stakeholders, including UEFA, called strongly for Infantino's resignation, with opposition spreading globally. However, within the AFC, led by Salman, positions have been more divided.

The Moroccan Football Federation was among the first to publicly support the FIFA President. In contrast, the Jordan Football Association expressed "serious concerns" and accused FIFA of attempting to "coerce" them into supporting Infantino's reelection bid.

Infantino has served as FIFA President since 2016 and remains the only candidate for next year's presidential election.

Traduzido por IA.

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