FIFA chief gets backing from African fooball for his re-election bid

The Confederation of African Football “unanimously reconfirmed its support for embattled FIFA President Gianni Infantino following a meeting of its executive committee on Thursday.

He has been under intense pressure for the world football governing body’s handling of a now-shelved proposal to open the World Cup to private investment.

With CAF making up 54 of FIFA’s 211 member associations, it is a ​powerful voting bloc that has largely supported Infantino since he took office 10 years ago.

In a statement, the body thanked him for his support of African football over the years but its president, Patrice Motsepe, stressed the need for good governance ​and transparency.

CAF’s support will provide some relief to Infantino who is hoping to win re-election for a fourth and final term in office in March.

He has faced widespread criticism and calls for him to resign from football bodies across the world, including the powerful European UEFA.

It on Thursday has reiterated a threat to boycott FIFA tournaments saying its key conditions for returning to them has not been met.

“UEFA made it abundantly clear in its statement on Saturday that it has lost confidence in Gianni Infantino’s presidency. That position holds,” it said in a statement.

CAF’s backing is at odds with the near-global condemnation of Infantino, with more countries withdrawing their ​support for his candidacy.

He was also criticised in a statement by the usually supportive South American governing body, CONMEBOL.

“The Council also unanimously expresses its concern regarding the repeated unilateral actions taken without resorting to dialogue or to the institutional mechanisms established to address situations of this nature,” it said.

North and Central American football’s governing body, CONCACAF, and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) have both been critical of Infantino, but were yet to react to the latest developments.

CONCACAF, whose president Victor Montagliani is seen as a potential challenger to lead FIFA, had called for “a comprehensive reckoning with this presidency”.