Soccer powerbrokers in Europe, North America and Asia believe FIFA president Gianni Infantino’s recent plan to sell a stake in the World Cup was a “fundamental breach of trust” with the institutions the sport’s global governing body serves. In an “open letter to the football family” revealed on Monday, UEFA, CONCACAF and the AFC also said that “when trust is broken through deception, when an individual places himself above the collective that entrusted him with authority, that duty has been abandoned.” In Europe, CONCACAF is the confederation of North, Central America and the Caribbean, and the AFC governs the sport in Asia. The letter was jointly signed by UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin, AFC President Salman Bin Ibrahim Al-Khalifa, CONCACAF President Victor Montagliani and the general secretaries of those continental governing bodies. “Football is the greatest shared passion in the world. It does not belong to any individual or any institution. It belongs to the players, the fans, the clubs, the member associations and all the institutions charged with safeguarding its future,” the open letter said. “It is in that spirit that, as confederations representing their members, we speak collectively today.” Infantino faces a revolt after his failed plan to sell stakes in the World Cup to private equity investors. “This is not the conduct of a custodian of the game, but of someone who believes the game is accountable to him,” the letter said. “These are not the qualities that football deserves in its leadership. That is why we have adopted this stance: not lightly and not alone, but together, and out of duty to the game we serve.” Infantino gained some support outside of football, with US President Donald Trump defending the FIFA leader in a social media post on Monday night. “FIFA would be making a terrible mistake if, for any reason, it even considered replacing President Gianni Infantino,” Trump posted. “It’s fantastic as you have just presided over the most successful World Cup, four times, ever presented. If you leave, it will never be as successful or profitable again! Thank you for your attention to this matter. President DJT.” UEFA had already threatened to boycott the World Cup and other FIFA competitions even though the governing body abandoned its failed plan and apologized for it. The Norwegian football federation called for Infantino to resign, while the Football Association of England also withdrew its support for Infantino’s re-election next March. “The strength of football has always been its unity. We ask that that unity be honored now,” the letter said. “For a leadership that serves football, not that seeks to control it.” Last Wednesday, Fifa said it had apologized for mistakes made during the failed plan, but that senior staff at a crisis meeting in Morocco “reaffirmed their full support” for Infantino’s presidency. However, the nature of the meeting was also met with criticism. “FIFA’s own letter also confirms that only one elected official was present at the leadership meeting in Morocco,” the open letter from the sport’s three continental federations said. “No member of the FIFA Council or any member association was invited to participate. Only the steering committee, made up of senior officials employed by FIFA, was present.” “Treat this as a lack of communication, when what football witnessed was a lack of judgment,” the letter said. “There remains no acknowledgment that attempting to sell a participation in the FIFA World Cup was a profound lack of judgment, not just a procedural misstep, but a fundamental breach of trust with the very institutions for which FIFA exists.” In a statement issued Saturday, FIFA defended Infantino against what it called a “concerted and continued effort” to undermine his leadership of the organization.___AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
