FIFA President's Adviser Steps Down as Opposition to Investment Plan Grows

Carlos Cordeiro has resigned as a senior adviser to FIFA president Gianni Infantino. This happened just hours after the Asian Football Confederation became the third major football group to oppose Infantino’s plan to sell shares in FIFA competitions to private investors.

Cordeiro spoke out against the proposal. He called it “a bad deal for football” that would “mortgage football’s future.” His resignation shows the increasing pushback against the plan, which UEFA and Concacaf have already rejected.

On Friday, BBC Sport reported that the AFC released a statement. The statement said the AFC “stands in solidarity” with its partners in Europe and North, Central America, and the Caribbean. They argued that the proposal could not “realistically achieve the necessary broad consensus and unity required to move forward.”

The AFC also highlighted the value of the FIFA World Cup. They said, “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.” They warned that “any proposal that risks undermining the unity and universal character of the competition must be reconsidered.”

This opposition from three confederations is a big setback for Infantino’s plans. The FIFA president had said the proposal needs a simple majority of 106 votes from the organisation’s 211 member associations to pass.

UEFA represents 55 member associations, Concacaf has 35, and the AFC has 46. If all their members vote against the proposal as their confederations suggest, that would total 136 votes. This makes it very unlikely that the proposal will get enough support for approval.