UEFA intends to proceed with its efforts to remove Gianni Infantino from the presidency of FIFA, even after lifting the threat to boycott the organization’s competitions.
On Thursday, UEFA’s 55 member associations, along with European representatives on the FIFA Council, will be presented with a formal letter guaranteeing that the controversial FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE) plan will not be reinstated.
The official lifting of the boycott is set to be confirmed during UEFA’s executive committee meeting in Monaco.
This move will satisfy UEFA’s key demands and ensure that the FIFA Under-20 Women’s World Cup can proceed next week in Poland, featuring six European teams.
However, BBC Sport understands that UEFA remains confident in finding a unified opposition candidate to challenge Infantino during his upcoming re-election in March.
The election is expected to be a close contest, as a candidate requires the support of 106 out of the 211 member associations to secure the presidency.
Nevertheless, UEFA has abandoned its previous strategy of seeking a vote of no confidence against the president.
Such a motion would have required the approval of three-quarters of the member associations—amounting to 159 votes—a threshold deemed highly unrealistic to achieve.
While no official candidate has been named yet, CONCACAF President Victor Montagliani is widely regarded as a serious potential contender.
Nominations for the presidential election must be officially submitted by November 18th.
BBC Sport reports that the vote is anticipated to be highly competitive; consequently, even if Infantino secures victory, the narrow margin could severely undermine his authority and compromise the legitimacy of his presidency.
Last month, European football’s 55 member associations voted to boycott all FIFA competitions until the FFE proposal was completely withdrawn, demanding binding assurances that FIFA will never again open its governance or competitions to private ownership.
Following the lifting of the boycott, FIFA welcomed the development, expressing satisfaction that all qualified teams will participate in the upcoming Under-20 Women’s World Cup.
Six European nations—England, France, Italy, Portugal, Spain, and tournament hosts Poland—are scheduled to compete in the tournament.
A FIFA spokesperson stated that the organization “strongly believes that football has the power to unite, even in challenging circumstances,” adding that FIFA “remains committed” to the development of the sport through “full dialogue with the confederations and stakeholders.”
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