Wales Withdraws Support for Gianni Infantino's FIFA Presidency Bid

The Football Association of Wales has dramatically withdrawn its backing for Gianni Infantino’s bid to stay on as Fifa president, a stinging public rebuke rooted in the fallout from his failed attempt to sell World Cup stakes to private investors.

Infantino, under fire for weeks over the proposal, quietly scrapped the plan last week after three continental confederations rejected it. The climbdown has not eased the pressure. Instead, it has sharpened focus on his decade in charge of world football’s governing body and raised fresh questions about his judgment.

That pressure intensified in Britain. The UK prime minister, Andy Burnham, weighed in on Friday, bluntly branding Infantino “the wrong man” to lead Fifa. England’s Football Association followed by demanding a “full and robust review” of his leadership.

Now Wales has gone a step further.

In a strongly worded statement, the FAW confirmed it no longer supports Infantino’s candidacy for the 2027–2031 presidential term. The governing body cited “recent failures in good governance, processes, leadership, values, stakeholder management, communications and sound judgement” as the reasons behind its decision, concluding that Infantino has “lost the confidence of the FAW to remain at the helm of world football”.

The message from Cardiff was unambiguous: when football’s interests are not put first, that is “a failure we cannot accept”.

Infantino is still scheduled to stand for re-election in March next year. But with one national association already breaking ranks, and heavyweight voices in the UK calling for scrutiny rather than continuity, the Swiss administrator faces a campaign that now looks far more fraught than the coronation many once expected.