The fate of FIFA President Gianni Infantino, strongly contested by part of the football world, must be settled according to the democratic procedures in force in the body, insisted Thursday the president of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) Patrice Motsepe.
“If anyone has a problem with anyone, whether it’s Gianni or anyone else, they follow the procedure, they follow the FIFA procedure, it’s as simple as that,” Motsepe told British broadcaster Sky News on Thursday.
“If you want to impeach him, go through elections. Let the 211 member associations (of FIFA, Editor’s note) decide,” continued the South African leader, who was in Salzburg on Wednesday evening, where he met his UEFA counterpart Aleksander Ceferin on the sidelines of the European Super Cup between Paris SG and Aston Villa.
The battle promises to be tough
UEFA (Europe), Concacaf (Central and North America) and the AFC (Asia) have declared war on Gianni Infantino, seeking his departure from the presidency of the world body.
CAF, on the other hand, officially supported the 56-year-old Italian-Swiss, whose project to open FIFA to private investors in the middle of the summer caused a storm in world football.
“You have to be very careful. Elections will be held next year. Shouldn’t we let this process take its course?” Motsepe asked again, while the battle promises to be tough for Infantino in order to achieve a majority among the 211 voting federations during the election scheduled for next March in Rabat, Morocco.
On Thursday, the Irish Federation became the latest national federation to officially withdraw its support. The English and Welsh FAs have also indicated their support for UEFA’s position, which is threatening to boycott FIFA competitions as long as Infantino is in office.
