British Prime Minister Andy Burnham has openly spoken out in favor of replacing FIFA President Gianni Infantino. The Swiss was “the wrong man” at the head of the world football association, said the new head of government after the latest developments surrounding FIFA’s investor plans.
Burnham reiterated the criticism he had already expressed immediately after the plans became known. “This was an outrageous proposal,” Burnham said. In his view, pushing this forward at all shows that Infantino is the wrong man to lead the world association.
Burnham: “The World Cup is not a product”
Burnham had previously said in an Instagram video that football does not belong to the investors. “It belongs to the people who fill the stands, who stand on the sidelines, week after week, rain and shine. The World Cup is not a product.”
The resistance to the plans is now enormous. The European Football Union has threatened a boycott of FIFA competitions by its 55 member associations. The continental association Concacaf, which is responsible for North and Central America and the Caribbean, and the Asian umbrella organization AFC have clearly distanced themselves from Infantino. Carlos Cordeiro, a high-ranking advisor to the head of FIFA, resigned in protest against the plan.
Majority for the plans now questionable
According to FIFA, private investors will be able to acquire around 20 percent of the shares in the newly founded subsidiary FFE, the value of which is initially set at a total of 20 billion dollars. The FFE bundles the commercial rights to FIFA competitions such as the Men’s and Women’s World Cups and the Club World Cup.
FIFA would remain the majority shareholder of the company and, according to its own statements, would continue to have control over the match calendar and all questions of the rules. All 211 FIFA member associations are also set to receive smaller shares in the company, which could either be retained or sold. However, it is currently questionable whether a majority of associations would support the plans.