A bruising 24 hours - what next for Fifa and under-pressure Infantino?

What the report says

Gianni Infantino, the Fifa president, is facing the most serious challenge to his leadership since taking office in 2016, according to BBC Sport Football. The immediate dispute centres on his proposal to explore selling stakes in some Fifa competitions to private investment firms, a plan that alarmed several football confederations and prompted rapid public backlash over the past few days.

BBC Sport reported that Uefa, Fifa’s most prominent critic, has threatened to boycott Fifa competitions, including the World Cup, and later said it had lost confidence in Infantino’s leadership. Concacaf also called for a full review of Fifa’s governance, while some members of the Asian Football Confederation distanced themselves from him. Two close allies, senior adviser Carlos Cordeiro and chief operating officer Kevin Lamour, also stepped away, adding to the pressure. Infantino then backed away from the proposal in a statement on Saturday.

The article says several routes could now determine what happens next. One would be for Infantino to resign, as Sepp Blatter did in 2015. Another would be for Fifa Council members to seek an emergency meeting, or for member associations to force an extraordinary congress and a possible vote of no confidence. Any formal challenge would take time, and BBC Sport noted that support would still need to be assembled across the 211 member associations.

The piece adds that a new election is not due until March, and possible successors mentioned include Concacaf president Victor Montagliani and AFC president Sheikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa. The wider significance is that the episode has reopened long-running questions about Fifa’s governance and the balance of power inside world football.