The Scottish Football Association (SFA) has officially withdrawn its support for Gianni Infantino, confirming it will not vote for his re-election as FIFA president. Chief executive Ian Maxwell announced the decision, stating that the SFA has lost confidence in the current leadership and is aligning itself with the stance taken by UEFA’s 55 member associations.
Infantino, who has served as FIFA president since 2016, is facing mounting pressure following a controversial and subsequently abandoned proposal to launch a new company, FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE). The plan aimed to manage commercial and ticketing rights for all FIFA competitions, including the World Cup, with 21% of the entity to be sold to a private investment firm. The initiative faced fierce backlash from several confederations, particularly UEFA, which has threatened a potential boycott of FIFA tournaments.
Maxwell emphasized that the SFA’s position has been consistent since the UEFA associations convened to discuss the matter. He noted that the 55 nations are acting as a unified front, asserting that their collective voice carries more weight than individual dissent. The SFA’s decision follows similar moves by the football associations of England, Wales, and the Republic of Ireland, all of which have declared they will not support Infantino in the upcoming March election.
Beyond the FFE controversy, Infantino’s eligibility to stand for a fourth term is being challenged by FairSquare, a non-profit organization focused on sports accountability. FairSquare has formally requested that FIFA’s governance, audit, and compliance committee rule the president ineligible, arguing that he is already serving his third and final term. FIFA statutes generally limit a president to three four-year terms, totaling 12 years. However, after replacing Sepp Blatter in 2016, Infantino successfully argued in 2022 that his initial partial term should be discounted, allowing him to seek a fourth term that could extend his tenure to 2031.
FairSquare contends that this exemption lacks a transparent legal basis and violates the spirit of FIFA’s term-limit regulations. In a letter to the FIFA review committee, the group questioned why the decision was made without a clear, published justification or a vote by the FIFA Congress. Meanwhile, an open letter from the leadership of UEFA, Concacaf, and the Asian Football Confederation recently accused FIFA and its president of breaking trust through deception, suggesting that the FFE proposal raised fundamental concerns regarding the integrity of those in power.
While the letter did not explicitly name Infantino, sources indicate it serves as a signal for him to resign. FIFA has committed to presenting a report on the FFE project at the next council meeting in October, though the three confederations have criticized this approach, arguing that an independent third party should conduct the review. UEFA has also issued a legal warning, demanding that FIFA preserve all documentation related to the abandoned commercial plans.
The global football landscape remains deeply divided. While the confederations of Africa, South America, and Oceania have largely backed Infantino, internal fractures are evident. In Oceania, New Zealand has broken ranks to oppose him, while Mexico, Grenada, and St Kitts and Nevis have split from the majority of Concacaf to offer their support. Similarly, eight Asian nations—including Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, and Kuwait—have diverged from their confederation’s stance to champion the president.
The FIFA Council itself appears split, raising significant questions about Infantino’s ability to govern effectively even if he secures a victory among the 211 member associations. As of now, no rival candidates have formally entered the race ahead of the November 18 deadline. The first practical test of the opposition’s resolve is expected in just over three weeks, when the FIFA Under-20 Women’s World Cup, hosted by Poland, begins with several European nations participating.
Maxwell dismissed suggestions that the SFA had delayed its public announcement to protect its president, Mike Mulraney, who chairs the FIFA finance committee. He reiterated that the SFA’s alignment with the broader European position is a matter of principle regarding the future of the game’s governance. With substantive talks on potential breakaway competitions reportedly in preliminary stages among the three major confederations, the political future of the FIFA presidency remains highly uncertain. The report also notes that the position of the SFA has been clear since the 55 Uefa associations met,” said Maxwell, speaking as he announced Belgian Sebastian Pocognoli as the new Scotland head coach. The report also notes that we have aligned ourselves with the Uefa position and 55 nations are stronger than one voice. The report also notes that the SFA will not be voting for Gianni Infantino come the re-election in early 2027. The report also notes that fifa statutes state that a president can only serve three terms of four years for a maximum of 12 years. The report also notes that by 2031, would stretch his tenure to 15 years, next year Infantino is hoping to win a fourth which. The report also notes that which ended in 2019, it stems from the Swiss-Italian replacing Sepp Blatter in 2016 and effectively serving the remainder of that term. The report also notes that and again in 2023, infantino was re-elected that year. The report also notes that in 2022, Infantino managed to successfully argue his case to the governance, audit and compliance committee that the 2016-2019 term should be discounted as it was not four years, making him eligible to stand in 2027.
