For a fortnight the anger over FIFA Forward Enterprise had run through confederations and federation presidents. Last week the players formally joined in.

FIFPRO, which represents more than 70 player unions worldwide, sent a joint letter on 6 August to FIFA secretary general Mattias Grafstrom setting out its objections to Infantino in language sharper than any it has used against a sitting FIFA president. The letter was co-signed by FIFPRO’s president and by the presidents of its five regional divisions in Africa, Asia/Oceania, Europe, South America and Central & North America.

The union accuses Infantino of “a profound abuse of presidential power” and does not accept that the shelving of the plan has closed the matter.

“The withdrawal of FFE prevented an irreversible decision. It did not restore the confidence.”

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“That confidence has now been fundamentally broken.”

The central charge is procedural. FFE, the vehicle that would have brought FIFA’s commercial rights and tournament delivery together under private investment, was “conceived in secrecy, negotiated behind closed doors and brought to the brink of agreement before the FIFA Council, the Member Associations, players and football’s recognised stakeholders even knew it existed.”

UEFA and FIFPRO reject the Morocco line

FIFA has spent the past week insisting that Infantino still has the room. After a management board meeting in Morocco on 5 August, the governing body said the president retained the “full support” of those present and acknowledged only that “mistakes” had been made in how FFE was handled. FIFPRO said it read the tone of that response “with deep concern.”

Confidence, the union wrote, “cannot be rebuilt through carefully drafted statements, internal reviews or promises to improve processes.”

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UEFA moved the same day to slap down the Morocco meeting, reinforcing the position its 55 members had taken when they voted at the end of July to boycott FIFA competitions if FFE went ahead.

“Yesterday’s announcement that some people employed by the FIFA President agree with him changes nothing,” European football’s governing body said, reaffirming that it has lost confidence in the presidency.

Four reforms as the price of trust

The letter to Grafstrom sets out what FIFPRO wants FIFA to accept before the relationship can be repaired:

• A permanent, structural role for the Global Social Dialogue Platform inside FIFA governance

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• Legally binding stakeholder engagement on major decisions, including the international match calendar and competition expansion

• Voting rights for professional football’s stakeholders on the FIFA Council, with a formally recognised role for FIFPRO

• Structural reforms making it impossible for any individual, ever again, to drive unilateral decisions through the game

“The role of FIFA president exists to protect institutions, not to circumvent them,” the union said.

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FIFA calls it a ‘concerted effort’ to undermine

Two days later, FIFA answered back. In a statement on 8 August the governing body complained of a “concerted and ongoing effort by some to undermine FIFA and its President” and warned that “those who do not have the support of FIFA’s Member Associations should not seek to achieve through allegation, insinuation or misinformation what they cannot achieve through FIFA’s established democratic processes.”

The next FIFA presidential election is scheduled for 18 March 2027 at the 77th FIFA Congress in Rabat, with the nomination deadline set for 18 November 2026. Under FIFA rules each of the 211 member associations casts its own vote, so opposition from a confederation’s leadership does not automatically translate into ballots against a candidate.

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