NewzCAF support provided relief to Fifa president Gianni Infantino after criticism over his aborted World Cup commercial rights plan. (Reuters pic)CAPE TOWN: The Confederation of African Football’s Executive Committee unanimously confirmed its support for beleaguered Fifa president Gianni Infantino on Thursday, at odds with its counterparts in Europe, North America and Asia.On the day Uefa said it is committed to boycotting future World Cups at all levels while Infantino remains in office, CAF's top decision-making body sided with the Fifa president as he seeks re-election in March next year.CAF makes up 54 of Fifa’s 211 member associations, and is a powerful voting bloc that has largely supported Infantino since he took office in 2016."The CAF exco unanimously reconfirmed its support for Fifa president Gianni Infantino and thanked him for his support for African football over the years," CAF said in a statement.CAF president Patrice Motsepe welcomed Fifa’s pledge to review the processes that led to the controversy which sparked the fiercest revolt of Infantino's tenure as national federations complained they had been sidelined over the abandoned proposal to sell a slice of the World Cup's commercial future."CAF welcomes and endorses the "Joint Update" by Fifa president Gianni Infantino and secretary general Mattias Grafstrom," Motsepe said, but stressed the need for good governance and transparency in global football."We are committed to continue working together with Fifa, its member associations, other football Confederations and stakeholders to safeguard and adhere to governance, due process, and transparency global best practises and to contribute to the development and growth of football worldwide."CAF’s support will provide some relief to Infantino, who has faced near global condemnation for his aborted plan to establish the Fifa Forward Enterprise (FFE) and sell commercial rights to the World Cup.Earlier this week, five of Africa’s most influential football leaders issued statements in support of Infantino, while also welcoming the decision to drop his controversial plan to sell a stake in future World Cup revenue.CAF vice president Fouzi Lekjaa from Morocco and fellow Fifa Council members Hany Abo Rida (Egypt), Hamidou Djibrilla (Niger) and Ahmed Yahya (Mauritania) all pledged to support Infantino.Veron Mosengo-Omba, recently elected president of the f… The English Football Association has withdrawn support for Fifa president Gianni Infantino after his failed World Cup stakes plan.
(The FA pic)LONDON: The English Football Association has withdrawn its support for under-fire Fifa president Gianni Infantino after his failed plan to sell stakes in the World Cup, according to reports on Thursday.The BBC and Sky said the FA has sent a letter underlining its refusal to back Infantino, who wanted to sell a 20% stake in the World Cup to private equity investors through his Fifa Forward Enterprise.The plan sparked a cascade of criticism for Infantino and was rejected by European body Uefa and two other continental confederations, forcing him to scrap the scheme last week.Amid growing calls for his resignation, the 56-year-old received the backing of senior Fifa directors at an emergency meeting in Morocco on Wednesday.But Uefa turned the heat back up on Infantino on Thursday when it said it would maintain its plan to boycott the men's and women's World Cups in protest at his "shabby" plot.Uefa said in a statement that Fifa's support of Infantino "changed nothing".According to British media, the English FA has joined the chorus of disapproval by refusing to support his bid for re-election as Fifa president next year.Former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger, who now works for Fifa, and ex-Portugal star Luis Figo are among the leading names from the football world to condemn Infantino's plan.As Infantino clings to his role, global players' union, FIFPRO on Thursday condemned Fifa and its president for their "abuse of power".Fifa had said during Wednesday's meeting that "mistakes" were "acknowledged".World football's governing body insisted it was "not the intention" for the Fifa Council and members association to "feel excluded from the process and that the process should have been handled differently".
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