Uefa leads push to force Gianni Infantino resignation after World Cup plan collapses | OneFootball

Uefa is leading a multi-front strategy to force Gianni Infantino's resignation as Fifa president after the humiliating collapse of his plan to privatise the World Cup.

With Infantino’s support otherwise frittering away, with Wales and Finland starting the process of countries withdrawing endorsement letters for the Swiss official to run for another term from 2027 to 2031, there is now hope from his critics that he doesn't even get to another election, which is due to be staged in March 2027.

Uefa and Concacaf are seeking to cut off a usual vote-winning strategy of Infantino promising more money to individual associations by insisting that should be coming to them anyway, after such a lucrative World Cup, and all of this is then complemented by the threat of a legal case over the proposals.

A letter from Uefa to Infantino, first reported by the Daily Telegraph, said the body "is actively considering legal action, arbitration, and/or regulatory complaints (together, the 'proceedings') arising out of and in connection with the FFE plan proposed by Fifa".

Infantino is meanwhile braced to see a number of support letters withdrawn. The Independent reported on the eve of the World Cup how individual associations had been feeling pressured into endorsing the Fifa president, a situation that eventually led to at least 200 letters going in.

The drive was viewed as curious at the time, but is now set to bring another avalanche of pressure for Infantino as a number of federations are expected to withdraw those same letters. Wales and Finland are among the first in Europe, with the English FA also reportedly set to remove their support.

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The English and Welsh FAs have withdrawn their support for FIFA president Gianni Infantino (PA Archive)

Infantino is said to have been desperately trying to secure his position as Fifa president over the last few days. That is also why many senior football figures were struck by a key final paragraph in Saturday morning's announcement that the idea would be scrapped.

"Moving forward," Infantino said, "my intent is to bring all interested parties back together in the coming days and weeks in the spirit of shared interest in our game, and with the objective to continue growing football everywhere, particularly in those countries that mostly need our support."

This had been interpreted as a move to just increase funding in order to secure votes, but Uefa and Concacaf immediately headed that off by stating they would be insisting on more redistribution from World Cup revenue anyway.

Uefa's Saturday statement read: "UEFA will begin work immediately with partners and stakeholders all over the world and right across the game to propose a new way of distributing resources through the existing FIFA Forward programme.

“We must start to use some of that money that is sat idle in FIFA’s bank account to deliver the kick start that the grassroots and the wider game need in each of the 211 countries of FIFA. But we don’t need to sell off the family silver to pay for it.”

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Gianni Infantino and Donald Trump hold the World Cup (PA Wire)

Concacaf meanwhile added they “will also work within that same framework to determine how existing vast reserves can be dispersed to our membership via the Fifa Forward funding for football development across our region, without compromising our shared future.”

As one source said afterwards, “after these statements on cash reserves I’m not sure what options Gianni has left.”

He then faces further pressure from the threat of a legal case, as Uefa's letter added that it wants "immediate steps to identify, locate and preserve all documents and electronically stored information described in this notice that are in your or Fifa possession, custody or control.

“These obligations arise independently of any internal retention policy you or your organisation maintain and supersede any routine document destruction or deletion policies that would otherwise apply.”