ROME – The Italian Football Federation (FIGC) has become the latest high-profile national governing body to pull its backing for embattled FIFA President Gianni Infantino, deepening the crisis facing the incumbent ahead of March’s presidential election in Morocco.
In an official statement released Wednesday, FIGC confirmed it would not support Infantino’s re-election bid, citing recent controversial moves led by the FIFA chief related to global football governance and the future expansion of top international competitions. The move aligns Italy with a growing bloc of European football authorities that have publicly turned against Infantino in recent weeks, following growing backlash over his policy proposals.
The mounting pressure on Infantino stems from a now-scrapped plan to sell private equity stakes in the FIFA World Cup, football’s most watched and commercially valuable global tournament. That proposal drew fierce condemnation from across the sport: three of FIFA’s six continental confederations have formally accused Infantino of deception, while European football’s governing body UEFA threatened to organize a full boycott of FIFA-run international competitions if the plan moved forward.
FIGC President Giovanni Malagò emphasized the federation’s alignment with European football’s shared vision for the sport’s future in the statement. “We will continue to work alongside UEFA and the other European federations to promote a vision of soccer based on merit, solidarity, sustainability, and the centrality of fans,” Malagò said. “We identify with a model of dialogue, listening, and shared responsibility that has, until now, allowed soccer to grow, innovate and at the same time defend its founding principles.”
Italy’s withdrawal of support follows a wave of opposition that emerged earlier this month, when the football federations of England, Wales and Northern Ireland all pulled their backing for Infantino. Norway has gone even further, calling explicitly for Infantino to resign from his post. A coalition of six Nordic nations – Norway, Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Iceland and the Faeroe Islands – has also released a joint statement confirming they have “lost confidence” in Infantino’s leadership.
Infantino has held the role of FIFA president since 2016, and prior to the recent backlash over the private equity proposal, he was widely expected to secure a third term unopposed when delegates gather for the election in Morocco next March. FIFA has set a November 18 deadline for any potential challengers to submit their nominations for the presidency.
While opposition has grown sharply across European football, Infantino still retains public backing from a number of FIFA’s 211 member associations. That includes Morocco, the co-host of the 2030 World Cup and host of next year’s presidential election, as well as Qatar, where Infantino resided before the country hosted the 2022 men’s World Cup. Lebanon also granted Infantino honorary citizenship earlier this year and has reaffirmed its support. Saudi Arabia, the host of the 2034 World Cup which has close political ties to the FIFA president, has so far declined to issue a public statement of backing.