Infantino backs global football investment plan despite CONCACAF opposition

FIFA president Gianni Infantino has accused wealthy football nations of resisting efforts to close the gap with less-developed countries, after attending a Caribbean Football Union (CFU) Under-14 tournament despite a request from CONCACAF president Victor Montagliani to stay away.

Infantino made the comments in the Dominican Republic, where he was attending a meeting with CFU members. Montagliani had asked him not to attend the youth competition because his presence could overshadow the tournament for the children, amid an ongoing dispute between the two football administrators.

The FIFA president said he had received strong support in the Caribbean and insisted that his priority was expanding the game across all member associations.

“It’s important to have dialogue and to express one’s views and opinions. I feel very happy with all the support I get here because this is our job – to grow football in every country, some unfortunately don’t want to see other nations grow. We need to narrow the gap between the big countries and all the others. We need to give all the others opportunities and investment.”

Infantino’s disagreement with Montagliani, who is also a FIFA vice-president and has been touted as a possible candidate for the FIFA presidency, is linked to the collapse of the FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE) proposal.

CONCACAF, UEFA and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) were among the leading opponents of the Swiss-Italian’s plan. The proposal failed before formal discussions could take place and is no longer being pursued.

Infantino is seeking another term in office, which would keep him as FIFA president until 2031, and appears to be building support among the organisation’s less wealthy member associations.

His approach is also seen as an attempt to strengthen backing from the Confederation of African Football (CAF) and the South American Football Confederation (CONMEBOL). His decision to attend the CFU Under-14 tournament, despite Montagliani’s request, appeared to underline his intention to engage directly with national federations and reduce the influence of confederations such as CONCACAF.

The dispute comes as opposition to Infantino grows in parts of Europe. On Monday, football associations from the Nordic region – Iceland, Finland, Norway, Denmark, Sweden and Faroe Islands – issued a joint statement calling for his resignation.

The statement does not appear to have changed Infantino’s plans. He said administrators should spend less time talking and focus instead on developing football through new competitions and investment.

“I always say that us football administrators talk too much, sometimes we must talk less and let the ball do all the talking. We will organise for the first time in FIFA history a u/15 tournament and all the 211 countries of FIFA are invited. That’s why we need resources, sponsors and broadcasters and whatever we can get in order to reinvest back into the game, so that we can have a truly global game in every corner of the world.”

Although CAF has issued a statement backing Infantino, most African member associations have not publicly declared their support. Only a small number have done so, leaving uncertainty over the extent of his backing across the continent.

It also remains unclear whether Infantino’s next visit will be to Africa as he continues to promote his plans and seek support for another term.