Infantino apologises to Fifa Council over abandoned commercial-rights plan

Gianni Infantino apologised to Fifa’s council for the way he handled a proposal to sell part of the organisation’s commercial rights, but Football Association chair Debbie Hewitt said key questions remained unanswered and he was not fit to lead unless he answered them.

The proposal, known as Fifa Forward Enterprise (FFE), would have given a private investment firm a share of Fifa’s commercial rights. Infantino abandoned it within days of it emerging. He told the council the plan had been a proposal, not a done deal, and was intended to allow Fifa to invest more in member associations.

After Thursday’s three-and-a-half-hour meeting in Zurich, Infantino said in a video statement that he apologised for mistakes in the project’s communication and consultation process. He said he would answer questions in writing “in due course”. He had declined to speak to reporters, including the BBC.

Hewitt, a Fifa vice-president, said council members had not received documents they had specifically requested about FFE. “I think the man has to answer those questions and if he doesn’t answer those questions now, he’s not fit to be Fifa president,” she said, adding that this view had been shared at the meeting.

She said Infantino had shown “some contrition”, but that his apology was about not bringing the proposal to the council. She also said she had received no new information that changed her view of him, “other than we do have a president who is apologetic”.

The council also discussed the suspended red-card ban given to US striker Folarin Balogun and the Fifa Peace Prize, awarded to US President Donald Trump. Hewitt said the prize’s origins and decision-making would be examined by Fifa’s social committee, which is due to report back in December. Fifa’s legal committee will also review a proposed change to its disciplinary rules following the Balogun case.

Infantino is seeking a third term in an election due in March. Uefa, European football’s governing body, has repeatedly called for him to stand down and is seeking the release of documents relating to FFE through legal proceedings in the United States. Hewitt said the documents were crucial to the council’s understanding of what happened and to considering what, if any, criminal proceedings were needed. [1]