'A betrayal football will never forget': Fan petition calls for Fifa chief Gianni Infantino to resign over World Cup sell-off plan
Fan organisations have branded the Fifa president's plan to sell off the World Cup to private investors as "shameful".
Football fans have launched a global petition calling for Gianni Infantino to resign as president of Fifa as he continues to face mounting pressure to step down over his "shameful" World Cup sell-off plan.
Listen to this article
Calls for the embattled Fifa chief to go have intensified following his doomed plan to sell off stakes in the men’s World Cup to private investors.
In the latest attempt to dethrone infantino, fans groups have launched a petition on Change.org insisting his departure is "a must" after his "shameful" plan emerged.
A statement from the fan organisations said: “The shameful attempt by one individual – the Fifa president himself – to sell off the World Cup to private investors exposed a betrayal football will never forget.
“Infantino’s plan was stitched together in secret. Negotiated behind closed doors. Hidden from Fifa’s own members and from the millions of people whose passion makes football what it is.”
Read more: Trump wants Iran to pay compensation to US - after regime demanded reparations from Americans
Read more: Gianni Infantino’s Fifa failure is a lesson for leaders everywhere
The letter has support from all six Fifa confederations across continental and national fan groups, and they are encouraging fans to sign the petition.
It adds: “A president who repeatedly betrays football and makes a mockery of our game has lost the right to lead it.
“For the credibility of Fifa – and for the future of the game – he must resign.”
It comes after UEFA and two other confederations held initial talks about organising competitions themselves amid the backlash against the embattled FIFA president.
Europe’s governing body, the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and CONCACAF, which oversees football in the Caribbean, North and Central America, have accused Infantino of “deception” and while it is understood they want to give him the chance to resign and leave his position with dignity without seeking re-election in March next year, they want to insulate themselves from the unfolding crisis.
UEFA has previously threatened a boycott of FIFA competitions.
Infantino apologised for his proposal to create FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE), a company to run the commercial and operational aspects of FIFA’s tournaments, with an idea to sell off around 20 per cent to private investors.
But an open letter signed by the heads of UEFA, AFC and CONCACAF has urged FIFA to hold an independent review into Infantino’s scheme, while not naming the Swiss directly.
“Leadership in football is not a possession,” the letter said.
“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.”
But US President Donald Trump has said it would be a mistake to oust Infantino.
In a post on his Truth Social earlier this month, he wrote: “FIFA would be making a terrible mistake if, for any reason, they even considered replacing President Gianni Infantino.
“He is fantastic, having just presided over the most successful World Cup, by four times, ever presented.
“If he is gone, it will never be as successful or profitable again!”