The fortress of convictions of FIFA President Gianni Infantino, who had announced the creation of a new controlled company, “FIFA Forward Enterprise”, with the aim of concentrating all commercial and organizational activities of FIFA tournaments, starting from the Men's and Women's World Cups and the Club World Cup, has begun to collapse. A kind of “privatization” of world football, based on promises of huge profits, which has met with strong opposition and rejection.
First came the rejection of Aleksander Čeferin's UEFA, which, after receiving the support of CONCACAF, the confederation of North, Central America and the Caribbean, also won that of the AFC, the Asian Football Confederation, widening the "no" front and putting Infantino in a numerical minority. But the biggest problems for the FIFA president seem to lie within the organization itself, where his chief advisor, Carlos Cordeiro, has resigned: "It's a bad deal and I can't remain indifferent to it."
The opposing front expands: even the Asian Confederation AFC refuses
The front against Gianni Infantino's proposal has expanded rapidly in just a few hours and now risks making the implementation of his plan practically impossible. First UEFA, then CONCACAF and now the AFC, whose rejection could prove decisive, since without the Asian Confederation FIFA would no longer have the necessary voting base, moving from a majority to a minority. In a long and very harsh statement, the AFC made its official position known.
“We call on FIFA to launch an urgent review of its governance framework and decision-making process, to ensure that proposals of global importance are developed through proper consultation, meaningful involvement and oversight of FIFA’s statutory bodies,” the statement said, with the main criticism being that decisions were taken unilaterally, without the necessary consultation and involvement of all stakeholders: “Key concerns related to governance, institutional process and genuine consultation remain unanswered.”
Infantino no longer has a majority among member federations
The AFC's refusal to support FIFA will be crucial if the project is put to a vote. Until yesterday, Infantino had the numbers needed to impose his choice. In total, there are 211 national federations affiliated to FIFA, each with an equal vote in Congress, divided into six continental confederations. Europe, through UEFA, has 55 members. Africa, through CAF, has 54. Asia, through AFC, has 46. North America, Central America and the Caribbean, represented by CONCACAF, have between 35 and 41, South America, through CONMEBOL, has only 10, while Oceania, through OFC, has 11.
A simple majority would be enough to pass Infantino's proposal on the "FIFA Forward Enterprise", but at the moment this seems impossible, as the "yes" front would only have around 70 votes, compared to 143 votes for the "no" front. Therefore, with the opposition confirmed by UEFA, CONCACAF and AFC, the proposal is now numerically blocked, as it can no longer secure a majority, regardless of the decision that the other confederations will take.
Discord within FIFA: right-winger Carlos Cordeiro resigns
If the situation outside FIFA is no longer so positive, what shocks Gianni Infantino even more is the division created within the organization, after his main advisor, Carlos Cordeiro, resigned in protest at this decision, reaffirming his position: "I cannot sit by and watch while FIFA is considering the possibility of selling part of the World Cup. I want to be clear: I had no role in this proposal and I oppose it without hesitation. It is a bad deal for FIFA's member federations," he declared to Sky Sports, "a bad deal for football and for the long-term future of this sport."
Who is Carlos Cordeiro and how much weight does he have within FIFA?
Carlos Cordeiro is no ordinary collaborator, but a figure of great weight within FIFA, having previously held important roles as Infantino's right-hand man. He has been president of the United States Soccer Federation (US Soccer) and vice president of Goldman Sachs. At FIFA, he has held the position of senior advisor to Infantino since 2021 and had worked closely with him since the time of the joint US-Mexico-Canada bid for the 2026 World Cup, serving as a bridge between the White House and US federal agencies.
Now, for Gianni Infantino, the situation has become significantly more complicated in a very short time and he seems to be left alone and in the minority for his vision of the future of world football. With this balance of power, not only will he face great resistance from his opponents, but he no longer has the support necessary to take the project to a vote that would win it.
