Gianni Infantino’s position as FIFA president is becoming increasingly contested, with divisions emerging within African football despite the continent’s official backing for his leadership.
The dispute follows Infantino’s unsuccessful initiative to privatise the World Cup, alongside wider attempts to restore calm in global football. Those efforts have failed to produce the desired results, including within continental confederations that have publicly expressed support for the FIFA president.
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) is expected to play a significant role in any election for the leadership of world football. With 54 national associations affiliated to FIFA, it has the second-largest voting bloc after Europe.
CAF president Patrice Motsepe has publicly confirmed the organisation’s institutional support for Infantino, while insisting that the ballot box is the only legitimate way to bring about change in football’s administration.
However, Spanish newspaper Marca reports that the position across Africa is less certain than it appears. Constant Omari, who led the Congolese Football Federation from 2003 to 2021 and previously served on the FIFA Council, believes at least half of Africa’s football associations oppose Infantino.
Omari said an official position existed, but claimed resistance was building behind the scenes. He added that if a secret vote were held today, half of the federations would not follow the formal line.
The strongest criticism is reportedly coming from English-speaking associations. Their concerns include what they see as the excessive concentration of power in Infantino’s hands and several refereeing decisions, particularly the treatment of referee Omar Artan during the World Cup. They have also objected to the proposal to sell part of the World Cup rights to a private company.
Marca said Morocco and its football federation president Fouzi Lekjaa offered Infantino “unconditional support”. Lekjaa is seeking to secure the hosting rights for a World Cup final in return for that backing, according to the report.
Egypt, Mauritania, Sudan, Niger, Djibouti and the Democratic Republic of the Congo are also listed among the countries supporting Infantino. The Congolese federation is headed by Veron Mosengo-Omba, a close friend of Infantino since their time studying in Freiburg. Mosengo-Omba was previously CAF’s secretary general during Motsepe’s presidency.
The most critical group in Africa has questioned the relationship between Mosengo-Omba and Motsepe. It has also highlighted CAF’s unilateral termination of its television-rights agreement with Lagardere in 2019, as well as difficulties surrounding preparations for the next Africa Cup of Nations. Those concerns have been compounded by the announcement that the tournament will be staged every four years.
Omari said the refereeing controversy had been “the straw that broke the camel’s back”, adding that people within CAF were increasingly frustrated by what they viewed as Infantino’s complete dominance over Motsepe and the confederation’s administration.
Pressure is also continuing from European football. Reports following last week’s UEFA Super Cup final in Salzburg suggested UEFA could prepare a motion of no confidence in Infantino if he does not resign or leave office voluntarily in the coming months.
The European Club Association, led by Nasser Al-Khelaifi, is also working alongside UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin. According to Marca, the two organisations are seeking support from the Asian Football Confederation and the Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football, with the aim of driving institutional change within FIFA.
