UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin of Slovenia said he is “not interested” in succeeding Swiss-Italian Gianni Infantino as FIFA president, but warned that the increasingly criticized FIFA chief should resign or face a rival candidate in the leadership election in March.
اضافة اعلان
Infantino has faced growing pressure to step down as head of world football’s governing body over his now-abandoned plan to secure private investment in FIFA competitions, including the men’s and women’s World Cups.
UEFA, which governs football in Europe, threatened to boycott FIFA competitions, while several other continental and national football associations have withdrawn their support for Infantino.
However, Čeferin ruled out running to replace Infantino, saying on Monday: “I’m not interested for two reasons. First, I love UEFA and I love working here, and I think that at some point… it is also time to enjoy life a little.”
He added: “The second reason is that my credibility would be much higher if I were not interested in this position.”
Čeferin has been one of Infantino’s most prominent critics since the FIFA president revealed his controversial plans to seek private investment in a company managing FIFA competitions.
Čeferin believes Infantino’s once seemingly secure position is now under threat, predicting that the Swiss-Italian will either have to step down or face a challenger if he seeks re-election at the next FIFA Congress in Morocco in March 2027.
Infantino, a former UEFA general secretary, enjoyed broad support from European countries when he succeeded Switzerland’s Sepp Blatter as FIFA president in 2016.
But Čeferin, who revealed that he has not spoken to Infantino since the beginning of the current crisis, said the situation is now completely different.
“There are two options,” he said. “The first is that he (Infantino) realizes that he does not have the support not only the political support of those who have voting rights, but also the support of the football community, the fans, the players, former players and coaches.”
