Infantino promises greater openness after FIFA World Cup plan controversy

FIFA president Gianni Infantino says he is committed to creating a more open and consultative culture at football’s governing body after the collapse of his controversial $4.2bn (R69bn) World Cup commercial plan.

Infantino said the organisation’s renewed approach was “not about generating positive headlines” as he sought to ease a deepening rift within global football.

The proposed sale, which has now been abandoned, would have involved creating a commercial spin-off partly owned by investors led by Josh Kushner. The plan triggered the biggest crisis at FIFA since corruption arrests in 2015 resulted in trials in New York.

Infantino has offered an independent review of FIFA’s management and decision-making processes. He said on Instagram that he had received supportive messages from different parts of the world.

“It is important that we keep listening to each other,” he wrote in a post from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, where the Arabian Gulf Cup is being held.

The 37-member FIFA Council will meet in Zurich on 15 October, with Infantino chairing the gathering. Council members will also be asked to approve consultations with FIFA’s 211 member associations and the six continental confederations on “how to further strengthen FIFA’s decision-making processes”.

The member associations already effectively own FIFA, a Switzerland-based not-for-profit organisation which has at least $5bn in cash reserves following the financially successful men’s World Cup in North America.

Rift with football leaders

Three of FIFA’s vice-presidents have been among Infantino’s leading opponents during the dispute: Uefa president Aleksander Ceferin, Concacaf president Victor Montagliani and Asian Football Confederation president Sheikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa.

“There must be a culture of dialogue, of listening to each other and respecting one another,” Infantino said ahead of the council meeting. “This is not about generating positive headlines, it is about doing what is right for the game.”

Much of the turmoil during Infantino’s presidency, which began in 2016, has followed the announcement of multibillion-dollar commercial proposals without full consultation with the continental confederations. Uefa has previously helped block such plans.

FIFA has also faced criticism over what appeared to be an increasingly centralised leadership style, including Infantino’s close relationship with US President Donald Trump ahead of this year’s World Cup. FIFA created a peace prize which was awarded to Trump last year, while US striker Folarin Balogun avoided a mandatory tournament suspension after an intervention from the White House.

Under the abandoned proposal, FIFA’s 211 national associations were offered $20m each to approve the Fifa Forward Enterprise subsidiary. Uefa, Concacaf and the Asian Football Confederation responded that FIFA could instead afford to provide every association with a $10m dividend from its reserves.

Infantino faces a challenge to his presidency in an election to be held by FIFA members in Morocco on 18 March.

“I have never been more determined and committed in doing that,” he said. “FIFA is always engaged. I am always engaged and I want to hear how we can continue to grow football for the benefit of everybody, everywhere.”