More key FIFA staff break ranks as Infantino’s World Cup plan faces mutiny

What the report says

FIFA President Gianni Infantino is facing a widening backlash after abandoning a proposal to bring outside investment into the World Cup through a new commercial rights body. Al Jazeera reported that the plan, which would have aimed to raise $4.2bn, was dropped after several days of internal conflict, and that Infantino later apologized for the division it caused.

The fallout has included public distancing by senior FIFA figures. Secretary General Mattias Grafstrom circulated an internal message describing the situation as a damaging and troubling series of events, while FIFA’s chief of global football development, Arsene Wenger, said he had not been involved in the proposal and learned about it from media coverage. Infantino’s senior adviser Carlos Cordeiro also resigned immediately, and FIFA’s chief operating officer Kevin Lamour criticized the plan in unusually direct terms, according to the report.

The dispute has also spilled into FIFA’s wider power structure. UEFA confirmed it had sent a legal document-preservation request to FIFA, while European, North American and Caribbean, and Asian football leaders issued statements criticizing Infantino’s leadership or the lack of consultation around the proposal. Some African officials have signaled support for him ahead of a CAF meeting.

The article said the episode could affect Infantino’s political strength before FIFA’s next election cycle, with member associations and regional confederations weighing their positions. It also noted that any formal push for an Extraordinary FIFA Congress would require support from at least 43 member associations.