FIFA’s leadership has unanimously reaffirmed its full support for President Gianni Infantino following an emergency meeting held in Morocco, as the organization seeks to contain growing criticism surrounding a controversial World Cup commercial initiative.
According to a FIFA statement issued on Wednesday, senior officials, including Secretary General Mattias Grafström and members of the FIFA Council, expressed their confidence in Infantino’s leadership despite increasing calls for his resignation.
The meeting came a day after FIFA publicly apologized for shortcomings in the handling of a proposed plan to sell stakes linked to future FIFA World Cup revenues through a commercial entity known as FIFA Forward Enterprise.
FIFA acknowledged that mistakes had been made in the way the proposal was managed, admitting that the implementation process should have been handled differently. The governing body also confirmed that it had sent a formal letter of apology to FIFA Council members and national football associations, pledging to improve its governance processes and ensure similar issues do not arise in the future.
The show of support is widely seen as an effort by FIFA’s leadership to present a united front as the organization faces mounting scrutiny over its commercial strategy and internal decision-making.
