Gianni Infantino leadership crisis deepens as vice-president brands Fifa COO sacking ‘the final straw’

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Support for Gianni Infantino has further eroded among national football federations and Fifa officials following the departure of Chief Operating Officer Kevin Lamour, a move described by one Fifa vice-president as the “final straw”.

Fifa announced on Monday that Lamour had departed the organisation, coming weeks after he publicly condemned Infantino’s proposal to sell off a stake in the commercial rights for the World Cup alongside other tournaments.

The decision prompted Hungary’s Sandor Csanyi — one of eight Fifa vice-presidents and a Fifa Council member — to retract his backing for the under-fire president, who is facing calls to step down from three confederations.

“The final straw was the unexpected dismissal of Kevin Lamour,” Csanyi wrote in a letter sent to Infantino, which was seen by Reuters.

“Kevin performed his duties to a high professional and ethical standard and, as a highly competent executive, made a significant contribution to the transparent operation of the organisation.

Infantino is facing growing calls for him to quit (PA)

“The fact that his dismissal was prompted by his criticism of the above-mentioned initiative — an initiative that you yourself ultimately acknowledged to have been misguided — points to serious shortcomings in professional judgement, ethical standards and leadership.”

Fifa did not respond to a request for comment.

Lamour had previously remarked that internal staff were “deceived” over the commercial plan, describing it as the ambition of a single individual.

Other Fifa vice-presidents who have openly challenged Infantino’s actions include Uefa president Aleksander Ceferin, AFC president Sheikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al-Khalifa and Concacaf president Vittorio Montagliani.

Dejan Savicevic, a Fifa Council member since 2017 and president of Montenegro’s football association, confirmed that his organisation has also rescinded its previous endorsement of Infantino.

Infantino is up for reelection in March as he bids for a fourth term that would keep him in power until 2031. Savicevic set out his position in a letter sent to Fifa Secretary General Mattias Grafstrom.

“The recent developments within Fifa are extremely worrying and have shown serious lack of communication and transparency not only to the member associations… but also to the internal members, Fifa Council included, and structures which should hold the foundations of Fifa,” he stated.

Mattias Grafstrom has given his backing to Infantino (David Davies/PA) (PA Wire)

“The proposals put forward exposed concerning vulnerabilities regarding governance, not only at political level but also within the Fiifa administration.

“The Football Association of Montenegro agrees with the opinion of other European national associations and Uefa and demands a thorough review of the actions of the Fifa leadership,” he added.

Israel has likewise ended its backing for Infantino’s reelection following a unanimous vote by the IFA board, according to the Guardian.

Meanwhile, Football Association of Wales (FAW) chief executive Noel Mooney told the BBC that Infantino ought to resign over his failed initiative to “sell off the crown jewels” to private equity backers. Wales was the first national association to formally withdraw its backing earlier this month.

However, Infantino maintains the support of South America’s Conmebol and the African confederation, Caf.

Caf president Patrice Motsepe, who is also a Fifa vice-president, stated that any leadership change should be resolved democratically by Fifa’s 211 member associations during next year’s vote. A Caf spokesperson confirmed Motsepe had no further comment following Lamour’s departure.

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