Infantino heads to UN to save FIFA presidency after World Cup sell-off row
Gianni Infantino will lobby heads of state in New York this week to save his job as FIFA president.
The 56-year-old was expected at the UN General Assembly in the week of 22 September 2026 to chase support from national federations before a re-election vote next year, according to The Guardian. It is the latest stop in a bruising campaign. His attempt to sell off part of the World Cup collapsed in August. Allies have peeled away. Three continental confederations want him gone.
Infantino declared at the FIFA congress in Vancouver in April that he will seek a fourth and final term. The congress is FIFA’s parliament, where all 211 member associations meet and vote. FIFA rules normally limit presidents to three full terms. Infantino is allowed a fourth because his first spell lasted only three years after his 2016 election to replace Sepp Blatter.
What changed the race was the sale plan. In July, details emerged of FIFA Forward Enterprise, a proposal to sell 21% of the World Cup to private investors. The backlash was fast and loud.
Infantino was accused of repeatedly bypassing the FIFA council, the smaller decision-making body that is supposed to sign off major moves, and of avoiding open press-conference scrutiny while he pushed the idea. FIFA executive Kevin Lamour was sacked in August after openly criticising the plan. FIFA then abandoned the whole project that same month after widespread opposition.
The political damage has lingered. Dozens of associations that had sent endorsement letters for Infantino withdrew them after the plan surfaced. UEFA, Concacaf and the Asian Football Confederation have all called for him to go. FIFA, in turn, accused UEFA of a “smear campaign” in early September, Reuters reported.
Infantino has not backed down. He reasserted his plan to stand again in early September after attending the opening match of the Under-20 Women’s World Cup in Poland, in a statement issued by FIFA’s media team. He has also agreed to commission an independent review of FIFA’s governance in the wake of the row.
The ballot is scheduled for the FIFA congress in March 2027, when Infantino is due to stand for that fourth term, Reuters reported. As of 22 September 2026, he had no declared opponent. That matters because history favours incumbents. The last FIFA president beaten in a vote was Sir Stanley Rous in 1974.
The most credible challenger, if one emerges, is seen as Concacaf president Victor Montagliani. Concacaf runs football in North and Central America and the Caribbean. For now he has not declared. Sources told Reuters on 10 September that Infantino could still count on enough votes to survive, though opponents were rethinking strategy.
There is also scrutiny of how Infantino travels. He has been flying on a private jet provided by Qatar Airways as part of its sponsorship deal with FIFA, logging more than 100,000km, about 62,000 miles, according to previous reporting.
What makes this stand out is the scale of the turnaround. Only months ago Infantino was re-elected unopposed and talking up record funding of $2.7bn for members in the 2027-30 cycle. For fans, this means months of boardroom noise before a ball is kicked in anger. The World Cup itself is safe from sale. The fight now is over who gets to run it.
