UEFA, AFC, CONCACAF bosses unite against Infantino

European soccer's governing body UEFA, the Asian Football Confederation and CONCACAF issued an open letter on Monday attacking FIFA chief Gianni Infantino's conduct during the proposed sale of stakes in World Cup commercial rights.

The statement, which stopped just short of openly calling for new leadership, said that Infantino had broken trust "through deception" with the now-abandoned proposal, had "placed himself above the collective" and the three confederations called for a fully independent review of what had happened.

"Football's strength has always been its unity," their open letter to the soccer family said. "We call for that unity to be honored now, for leadership that serves football, not seeks to command it."

UEFA runs soccer in Europe, CONCACAF does the same for North, Central America and the Caribbean, while the AFC governs the sport in Asia.

The letter was co-signed by UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin, AFC president Shaikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa, CONCACAF president Victor Montagliani and their respective secretaries-general.

"Football is the world's greatest shared passion. It belongs to no individual and no institution. It belongs to the players, the fans, the clubs, the member associations and every institution entrusted with safeguarding its future," the open letter said.

"It is in that spirit, as confederations representing its members, that we speak collectively today."

Infantino has faced open revolt in the soccer world since he proposed, and then quickly abandoned, a plan to carve off the commercial rights to the World Cup and sell a 20 percent stake in them to private investors, raising about $4.2 billion.

Sources close to proceedings said the confederations viewed this letter as an opportunity for Infantino, who is seeking re-election next year, to quit with his dignity intact.

All three federations have threatened to boycott FIFA tournaments until they receive a promise that no similar schemes will be proposed in the future, and are investigating the possibility of staging competitions amongst themselves to give players the chance to compete amid the ongoing crisis with FIFA, the sources said.

"Leadership in football is not a possession," they said in Monday's statement.

"It is not about holding or demanding power to be held. It is a duty of service to the football family that entrusts it.

"When trust is broken through deception, when an individual places himself above the collective that entrusted him with authority, that duty has been abandoned."

'Failure of judgement'

They also criticized a FIFA emergency meeting in Morocco last week, saying there was only one elected official present, while also calling for an independent review, which FIFA would have no role in, to determine what led to this "profound failure of judgement".

United States Soccer and Canada Soccer on Monday backed the confederations' stance, saying FIFA needed 'meaningful' change.

"US Soccer, Canada Soccer, CFU (Caribbean Football Union) and UNCAF (Central American Football Union) stand together, along with our colleagues around the world, in calling for meaningful change that strengthens FIFA's governance, transparency and accountability," they said in a statement.

The US and Canada co-hosted the 2026 World Cup with Mexico.

On Friday, Norwegian Football Federation (NFF) president Lise Klaveness, seen by some as a potential candidate to replace Infantino at the helm, called on the 56-year-old to step down from the presidency immediately.

Klaveness has long been an outspoken critic of Infantino.

After quelling in-house dissent at the emergency meeting on Aug 5, FIFA apologized to the 211 federations and Infantino rallied his support among the six confederations that make up the world governing body.

Africa's confederation CAF released a statement on behalf of its 54 members backing Infantino on Thursday, with CONCACAF member Mexico following suit along with South American countries Argentina, Paraguay, Ecuador and Bolivia.

Blistering attack

On Friday, as Infantino attended the inauguration of Colombia's new President Abelardo de la Espriella in Cali, FIFA released a blistering attack on the critics of its president.

It warned against what it called a "concerted and ongoing effort" to undermine Infantino, saying attempts to challenge his leadership must follow the governing body's statutes and democratic procedures.

FIFA also echoed the statements of several of the bodies that supported Infantino, as well as one from South American confederation CONMEBOL.

FIFA's statement came after reports in The Daily Telegraph alleged that payments were made by UEFA to a former employee with whom Infantino is said to have been engaged in an intimate relationship during his time as the European governing body's secretary-general, allegations he has denied and that FIFA has rejected as unfounded.

Almost 70 of FIFA's 211 member associations have said publicly they will vote for Infantino with around a dozen either withdrawing previously promised support, or saying they will not vote for him.

Infantino would need a two-thirds majority in the first round of voting or a simple majority in subsequent rounds to extend his presidency until 2031.

UEFA apart, the confederations who say they have lost confidence in Infantino are not completely united, with several Asian nations breaking ranks with their governing body and backing him.