UEFA president speaks for the first time since FIFA said it would review its decision‑making, says trust still broken.
Published on 23 Sep 2026
Aleksander Ceferin delivered his first public remarks in a video address to the Portugal Football Summit, commenting on the ongoing trust issue after FIFA President Gianni Infantino signalled a review of the governing body’s decision‑making processes.
Ceferin stressed that unity, transparency and governance that serve the wider football community are essential for maintaining trust, noting that “not everyone places the game above their own ambitions.”
Trust in the sport, he said, rests on three pillars: unity, transparency, and governance that benefits the many, not the few. “In recent times, all three were disregarded by people who had sworn to protect them,” he added.
“The project that shattered the unity of world football may be abolished, but the trust it broke has not returned, and repairing it is our work now,” Ceferin declared.
Although Ceferin did not name Infantino or FIFA directly, his comments were a clear reference to the aborted plan to sell a 20 % stake in FIFA’s commercial rights—including the World Cup—to private investors. The proposal was withdrawn in July after strong opposition from UEFA, the Asian Football Confederation and CONCACAF.
“Football is not for sale,” Ceferin said. “UEFA has carried that message for years, and I’m confident this summit will amplify it further.”
Ceferin’s intervention followed two days of activity from Infantino, who sent a letter to the FIFA Council and all 211 member‑association presidents addressing the fallout.
In the letter, Infantino proposed seeking council approval for an independent external review of FIFA’s governance framework for major strategic initiatives and suggested consultations with confederations, member associations and other stakeholders to strengthen decision‑making.
He indicated that any review could assess the roles of the president, bureau, council and congress and explore ways to improve transparency and accountability.
So far, the letter has failed to win over several federations that had criticised Infantino over the investment proposal.
Infantino remains committed to leading FIFA and is expected to run for another term when the presidential election takes place in March 2027.
Ceferin concluded by urging those who govern the sport to remember their purpose.
“The game will remain safe if those who govern it remember whom they govern it for,” he said.