FIFA President Gianni Infantino has suffered another major setback after his senior adviser, Carlos Cordeiro, resigned in protest over the governing body’s controversial proposal to sell stakes in FIFA competitions to private investors.
Cordeiro’s resignation came just hours after the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) joined UEFA and Concacaf in opposing the investment proposal, deepening the growing resistance to a plan that has sparked intense debate across the global football community.
In a strongly worded statement, Cordeiro described the proposal as “a bad deal for football,” warning that it would effectively mortgage the future of the sport for short-term financial gains.
His departure represents one of the highest-profile internal objections to the initiative and raises fresh questions about the level of support for the proposal within FIFA’s leadership.
According to BBC Sport, the AFC announced that it was standing in solidarity with its counterparts in Europe and North, Central America and the Caribbean, arguing that the proposal lacks the broad consensus required for a decision of such significance.
The Asian football governing body stressed that the FIFA World Cup remains the pinnacle of international football because it belongs to every confederation and every member association.
It warned that any initiative capable of weakening the tournament’s unity, independence or global character should be reconsidered before any further action is taken.
The AFC’s opposition follows similar positions earlier adopted by UEFA and Concacaf, making it the third continental football confederation to reject the proposal.
The coordinated resistance has dealt a serious blow to Infantino’s efforts to secure approval for the investment plan.
Under FIFA’s voting rules, the proposal requires the support of a simple majority of the organization’s 211 member associations—at least 106 votes—to be adopted.
However, the combined membership of UEFA, Concacaf and the AFC amounts to 136 associations. Should their members vote in line with the positions of their respective confederations, the proposal would fall well short of the votes required for approval.
The growing opposition has significantly weakened the prospects of the plan succeeding and could force FIFA’s leadership to reconsider or substantially revise the proposal before presenting it for a vote.
The investment plan has generated widespread concern among football stakeholders, many of whom fear that allowing private investors to acquire interests in FIFA competitions could undermine the long-term independence, governance and global identity of the sport.
With opposition now coming from three of the world’s six continental confederations and the resignation of one of Infantino’s closest advisers, pressure is mounting on FIFA to revisit the proposal amid calls to prioritise football’s long-term interests over commercial considerations.
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