Six Arab soccer federations back Infantino amid FIFA crisis

Six heads of Arab national football associations issued a joint statement on Thursday declaring their full support for FIFA President Gianni Infantino, even as the Football Association of Ireland became the latest body to withdraw its backing amid a deepening governance crisis at world football's governing body.

Arab Bloc Rallies Behind Infantino

The statement, signed by the heads of the national federations of Qatar, Morocco, Egypt, Lebanon, Sudan, and Mauritania, reaffirmed confidence in Infantino's leadership as FIFA grapples with fallout from his abandoned plan to sell a 20% stake in the World Cup's commercial rights to private investors for approximately $4.2 billion.reuters+1

"We express our full support for Mr Gianni Infantino, president of FIFA, and reaffirm our confidence in his leadership and continued commitment to the development of football worldwide," the six federation heads said. Four of the signatories — Qatar's Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, Egypt's Hany Abo Rida, Morocco's Fouzi Lekjaa, and Mauritania's Ahmed Yahya — are also FIFA Council members.aljazeera+1

The backing is notable because some of the federations are members of the Asian Football Confederation, which had joined UEFA and CONCACAF in calling for Infantino to resign over the failed investment proposal.reuters

Support From Africa, Resistance From Europe

Malawi's football association president Fleetwood Haiya also voiced support for Infantino on Thursday, crediting FIFA's investment in African football for Malawi's qualification to the 2027 Women's World Cup in Brazil. "Infantino believed in us and gave us an opportunity when we talked to him about grassroots football," Haiya told Reuters. The Confederation of African Football has also backed Infantino.reuters+1

Meanwhile, Ireland's FAI rescinded its earlier letter of support, citing "significant concerns regarding governance, transparency and the lack of meaningful consultation". The English and Welsh FAs withdrew their support earlier this month.irishtimes+2

The Road to March

Infantino's withdrawn investment proposal had come bundled with a $20 million grant for each member association, an amount that could have doubled had federations signed on. Following a crisis meeting in Morocco last week, FIFA apologized to its 211 member associations for mistakes in handling the plan.reuters

The three confederations opposing Infantino represent 136 of the 211 member associations that will vote in the FIFA presidential election next March. However, with each national federation casting its own vote, the Arab federations' statement underscores that bloc voting remains unlikely — and that Infantino retains enough allies to mount a credible re-election campaign.aljazeera+1