The Belgian Football Federation (RBFA) will not support the candidacy of Gianni Infantino for a new mandate as president of FIFA, it said on Monday, deploring “the lack of transparency” and “governance” defects at the head of the world body.
Belgium is thus following the example of other European federations which have also withdrawn their support for Gianni Infantino, like Sweden, Scotland and Italy. “In phase with UEFA, (the RBFA) expects clear answers concerning the decision-making process” of the (aborted) project of the Italian-Swiss leader to place the proceeds of the World Cup in a company open to private investors.
The Balogun affair resurfaces
The Belgian Federation also demands in its press release “total transparency and clear explanations” in the matter of the red card of the American player Folarin Balogun during the World Cup in the United States.
Excluded during the round of 16 against Bosnia-Herzegovina, Balogun saw his suspension for the round of 16 against Belgium lifted after the intervention of American President Donald Trump with Gianni Infantino.
“Two months after the events, we note that our questions remain unanswered to this day,” regrets the president of the Belgian body, Pascale Van Damme, who “consequently asked FIFA to include the Balogun file on the agenda of the next meeting of the Fifa Council” on October 15.
Infantino confirmed on Sunday that he would seek a new mandate as head of FIFA in March 2027. He is to date the only declared candidate.
For several weeks, the world of football has been torn apart over its governance, with its adversaries accusing it of having developed without consultation its project to create a commercial company open to private investors. Assailed by criticism, the man at the head of FIFA since 2016 quickly abandoned his project. Which was not enough to put an end to the controversy.
