The Fifa president is widely expected to make an appearance at the United Nations general assembly this week in New York, where he will lobby heads of state for their federations’ support as he continues his campaign to be re-elected next year. Infantino has not been idle during the lull since Fifa abandoned its World Cup sell-off plan last month, instead crisscrossing the globe on a private jet provided by Qatar Airways as part of its sponsorship deal with world football’s governing body. From his strongholds in Doha, Rabat and Miami, Infantino has also visited Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Kyrgyzstan and various other countries, his trips often coinciding with the approval of funding for development projects worth millions of dollars.
His would-be opponents have been conspicuous by their silence. Whether Qatar Airways facilitating Infantino’s re-election campaign should be considered legitimate Fifa presidential business is a moot point, which neatly encapsulates the huge incumbency bias that will benefit Infantino if a vote takes place at the Fifa congress in March. That ballot appears to be in doubt, with multiple sources involved in the push to remove Infantino telling the Guardian they are running out of hope of finding a candidate to beat him.
Although dozens of the 200 member associations that had submitted letters of endorsement for Infantino withdrew them after the emergence of his Fifa Forward Enterprise sale plan in July, the prevailing view is that the silent majority remain steadfastly behind him. A meeting with the Caribbean Football Union, where funding projects were approved, may have splintered the vote at Concacaf – the North and Central American and Caribbean confederation – and there are increasing concerns that the European alliance may not be watertight. Fifa declared his candidacy, provides staff, aeroplanes and cars, even a personal video team.
Uefa and others could stage a boycott so the victory would be tainted, but Gianni will win a clear majority of whoever shows up.” Infantino first declared at the April congress in Vancouver his intention to seek a fourth and final term of office. Fifa statutes limit presidents to three full terms but under a recent change he will be permitted a fourth because his first term lasted three years, rather than the usual four, after his 2016 election to replace the disgraced Sepp Blatter. The 56-year-old reasserted his intention to stand after attending the first match of the Under-20 Women’s World Cup in Poland a fortnight ago.
That came via a statement issued by Fifa’s media team. As it stands Infantino does not have an opponent, despite Uefa, Concacaf and the Asian Football Confederation calling for him to go. Beyond the obvious difficulties of taking on an incumbent who controls the machinery of office and funding budgets – the last Fifa president beaten at the ballot box was Sir Stanley Rous in 1974 – there are specific reasons why none of the would-be candidates have declared.
The most credible challenger is regarded as Concacaf’s president, Victor Montagliani, but the Canadian is committed to standing for re-election at his confederation, and the vote is due to take place in February. Standing in both elections is not regarded as feasible, and Montagliani is understandably reluctant to walk away from Concacaf in favour of fighting a potentially losing battle against Infantino. The AFC president, Salman bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa, was beaten by Infantino in the 2016 election, the only time Infantino has faced an electoral opponent, and is further hamstrung by the fact that his confederation’s main powers, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, are backing Infantino.
Extract — continue reading at the source.
