Michel Platini urges Infantino to step down from Fifa over rules breaches | OneFootball

Speaking to Canal+, Michel Platini said Fifa president Gianni Infantino must step down, arguing he has not respected football’s rules.

He said economic matters are one thing, but Infantino has failed as guardian of the laws. He cited ad breaks, a 30-minute final half-time and a red-card episode.

He was referring to the annulment of United States forward Folarin Balogun’s suspension during the World Cup after an intervention by Donald Trump.

Since the end of this summer’s World Cup in the United States, Mexico and Canada, Infantino has faced pressure after an aborted plan to open the tournament to private investors. UEFA, alongside Concacaf and the AFC, is trying to oust him. He has led Fifa since 2016 and is a candidate for re-election at the March 2027 congress in Morocco.

UEFA is preparing a Swiss-law complaint against him for “mismanagement” and seeking a rival for 2027. Platini said any removal would come via the courts, not sporting bodies.

The former France captain said he has long known Infantino likes money and power. Platini had been in line to lead Fifa before fraud allegations, later ending in a definitive acquittal in Switzerland in August 2025, forced him out. He said Infantino did not bring him down but took advantage, and suggested the story was not over. In June, he filed a complaint accusing Infantino of “dénonciation calomnieuse” and “trafic d’influence”.

Source: Le Progres

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