Carlos Cordeiro Quits as Infantino Adviser Amid Rising Opposition to FIFA World Cup Investor Plan
FIFA president Gianni Infantino’s proposal to sell stakes in the commercial operations of the FIFA World Cup has suffered another setback after senior adviser Carlos Cordeiro resigned, describing the plan as “a bad deal” for football.
Cordeiro stepped down just hours after the Asian Football Confederation joined UEFA and Concacaf in opposing the proposal, leaving three of football’s biggest confederations united against the move. The former United States Soccer Federation president said the plan would “mortgage football’s future” and argued it was not in the best interests of the global game.
“It is a bad deal for FIFA’s member associations, a bad deal for football, and a bad deal for the long‑term future of the game,” Cordeiro wrote in his resignation statement.
The AFC announced earlier today, July 31, that it “stands in solidarity” with its counterparts in Europe and North, Central America and the Caribbean, insisting the proposal could not “realistically achieve the necessary broad consensus and unity required to move forward.”
The Asian governing body also defended the importance of the World Cup, saying: “The FIFA World Cup is the pinnacle of global football and derives its strength from the participation of all Confederations and the world’s leading football nations.”
It added that “any proposal that risks undermining the unity and universal character of the competition must be reconsidered.”
The growing opposition represents a major obstacle for Infantino, who had indicated that the proposal would require a simple majority of 106 votes from FIFA’s 211 member associations for approval.
UEFA has 55 member associations, Concacaf represents 35, while the AFC has 46. If their members vote in line with the positions adopted by their confederations, the proposal would face 136 votes against it, making its passage highly unlikely.
Despite the backlash, FIFA has rejected the criticism and says it will continue consulting stakeholders over the investor plan.
