England, Spain, Germany and Italy's top leagues demand FIFA governance reform
Four of Europe's leading football leagues have jointly criticized FIFA president Gianni Infantino and called for sweeping governance reform. The letter follows a scandal over a scrapped plan to sell major tournaments to private investors.
England's Premier League, Spain's LaLiga, Germany's Bundesliga and Italy's Serie A issued a joint letter on Friday taking aim at FIFA and demanding substantial reform of the organization's governance.
The letter states that football's historic foundations have come under threat in recent years due to fundamental governance problems, adding that FIFA's president has enabled harmful initiatives rather than opposing them.
Dispute over selling tournaments to investors
After the conclusion of the 2026 World Cup, FIFA president Gianni Infantino floated a plan to sell major tournaments, including the World Cup itself, to private investors. Following widespread criticism, he backed away from the idea, but the leagues note that the conditions which allowed such a plan to emerge still remain unaddressed.
The letter says the FIFA president has acknowledged the need for reform, but that artificially created procedures are not enough. The leagues are demanding an absolute governance overhaul to ensure, for example, that decisions on individual players' disciplinary sanctions are shielded from political interference.
The Balogun episode and calendar expansion
During the World Cup, US President Donald Trump secured the overturning of a disqualification against American forward Folarin Balogun, allowing him to play in a knockout match against Belgium, which Belgium won. The leagues' letter also criticizes FIFA's tendency toward endless expansion, noting that such decisions directly affect the international match calendar.
Several major national football federations have already opposed Infantino, who hopes to be re-elected as FIFA president. The FIFA presidential election will be held in March in Morocco, which will co-host the 2030 World Cup alongside Spain and Portugal. Following the scandal, reports emerged that Infantino had promised the final to Morocco in exchange for electoral support.
