Four leagues says Fifa governance ‘not fit for purpose’
They criticise ‘expansionism’ and want more input
The Premier League, Bundesliga, La Liga and Serie A have called for fundamental reform of Fifa, saying the organisation’s governance is “not fit for purpose”.
Fifa’s president, Gianni Infantino, has faced criticism and calls to quit since his plan for private investment in a commercial vehicle, Fifa Forward Enterprise (FFE), to run its tournaments emerged on 28 July.
Opposition from three continents forced the abandonment of the FFE plan but European football’s governing body, Uefa, insists it has lost confidence in Infantino and says it will work to identify an alternative candidate to stand against him in next year’s presidential election.
Infantino this week pledged to reform Fifa, but the heads of four of Europe’s leagues have co-signed a statement which said: “It is not enough for surface-level, process changes to be explored in the aftermath of FFE – fundamental governance reform is essential to restore clear constitutional boundaries within Fifa, including confidence that individual disciplinary matters remain demonstrably insulated from political interference.”
That last remark was a reference to the discontent around Fifa’s handling of the Folarin Balogun case, with the United States striker’s one-match ban being suspended to allow him to play a World Cup last-16 match against Belgium.
The suspension of the ban was enacted by Fifa’s disciplinary committee, but Donald Trump said he had called Infantino asking for a “review” of the ban.
The statement on Friday called for greater checks and balances at Fifa, including the creation of a permanent body featuring national association, league, club and player representatives with the power of veto over decisions concerning the international match calendar, employment, competitions and football’s core assets.
The leagues say it is essential to rein in what they describe as the “relentless expansionism” of Fifa which “affects everyone”.
“Around 1% of the world’s professional players take part in the Fifa World Cup, while the remaining players and their clubs stop competing when domestic leagues come to a halt,” the statement said. “Yet when Fifa takes unilateral decisions directly affecting us – for example, by expanding the international match calendar (IMC) and extending the periods in which domestic competitions must pause – the stakeholders most affected are not meaningfully involved in the decision-making process.
“A Fifa governance that concentrates unchecked regulatory, commercial and political power in a single office, while relegating affected stakeholders to mere advisory status, is not fit for purpose.”
Infantino said in an Instagram post on Thursday that he had “never been more determined and committed” to doing “what is right for the game”. The Swiss wrote: “There must be a culture of dialogue, of listening to each other and respecting one another.”
Uefa has called for an independent external review of how the FFE plan was developed, and has also made legal applications through the US courts for the disclosure of documents related to the plan, with a view to a possible criminal complaint being lodged in Switzerland if it is established that Infantino undervalued FFE at $20bn.
Fifa has described the content of Uefa’s legal applications as a “smear campaign” against it.