Trump backs Infantino as 3 soccer federations accuse FIFA president of 'deception' in open letter
3 federations, including CONCACAF, call for independent review of Infantino's private investment plan
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federations → back → plan
U.S. President Donald Trump says that embattled FIFA President Gianni Infantino should stay firmly in place atop the global soccer body, saying it would be "a terrible mistake" to oust him.
"He is fantastic, having just presided over the most successful World Cup … ever presented," Trump said in a social post on Monday evening lauding Infantino's performance during the recently concluded global soccer tournament.
"If he is gone, it will never be as successful or profitable again!"
Trump's comments came hours after UEFA, the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and CONCACAF, which runs football in the Caribbean, North and Central America, issued an open letter on Monday attacking Infantino over his conduct during the proposed sale of a stake in the commercial rights to the World Cup.
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which → say → Cup
The statement, which stopped just short of openly calling for a new leadership, said that Infantino had broken trust "through deception" with the now abandoned proposal, had "placed himself above the collective" and the three confederations called for a fully independent review of what had happened.
"Football's strength has always been its unity," their open letter to the football family said.
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letter → stop → family
We call for that unity to be honoured now, for leadership that serves football, not seeks to command it."
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that → call → it
On this side of the border, Prime Minister Mark Carney recently stated he does not have confidence in Infantino's leadership "given what transpired and given the nature of what transpired."
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what → state → nature
The Swiss administrator, Infantino, has faced open revolt in the football world since he proposed and then abandoned a plan to carve off the commercial rights to the World Cup and sell 20 per cent of them to private investors to raise about $4.2 billion US ($5.8 billion Cdn).
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he → face → US
The Joshua Kushner-founded Thrive Capital was connected to the proposal Infantino had revealed.
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Infantino → found → proposal
UEFA, backed by the AFC and CONCACAF, have threatened to boycott FIFA tournaments until they receive a promise that no similar schemes will be proposed in the future.
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schemes → back → future
"Leadership in football is not a possession," they said in Monday's statement.
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they → say → statement
"It is not about holding — or demanding — power to be held.
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It → hold → power
It is a duty of service to the football family that entrusts it."
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that → entrust → it
"When trust is broken through deception, when an individual places himself above the collective that entrusted him with authority, that duty has been abandoned."
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duty → break → authority
They also criticized a FIFA emergency meeting in Morocco last week, saying there was only one elected official present, while also calling for an independent review which FIFA would have no role in, to determine what led to this "profound failure of judgment."
On Friday, Norwegian Football Federation (NFF) President Lise Klaveness, seen by some as a potential candidate to replace Infantino, called on the 56-year-old to step down from the presidency immediately.
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Klaveness → criticize → presidency
Some federations still support president
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federations → support → president
After quelling in-house dissent at the emergency meeting on Wednesday, FIFA apologized to the 211 federations and Infantino rallied his support among the six confederations that make up the world governing body.
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that → quell → body
Africa's confederation CAF released a statement on behalf of its 54 members backing Infantino on Thursday with CONCACAF member Mexico following suit along with South American countries Argentina, Paraguay, Ecuador and Bolivia.
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Mexico → release → countries
On Friday, as Infantino attended the inauguration of Colombia's new president Abelardo De La Espriella, FIFA released a blistering attack on the critics of the president.
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FIFA → attend → president
It warned against what it called a "concerted and ongoing effort" to undermine Infantino, saying attempts to challenge his leadership must follow the governing body's statutes and democratic procedures.
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attempts → warn → statutes
FIFA also echoed the statements of several of the bodies that supported Infantino, as well as one from South American confederation CONMEBOL.
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that → echo → CONMEBOL
FIFA's statement came after reports by The Daily Telegraph about payments made by UEFA to a former employee during Infantino's time as the European governing body's general secretary, allegations he has denied and that FIFA has rejected as unfounded.
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FIFA → come → that
Almost 70 of FIFA's 211 member associations have said publicly they will vote for Infantino with around a dozen either withdrawing previously promised support or saying they will not vote for him.
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they → say → him
UEFA apart, the confederations who say they have lost confidence in Infantino are not completely united, with several Asian nations backing him as well as Mexico from CONCACAF.
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nations → say → CONCACAF
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