Mexico has broken ranks with Concacaf to publicly back Fifa president Gianni Infantino, as pressure on the 56-year-old continues to grow over his aborted plans to sell stakes in the World Cup to private investors. The Mexican Football Federation said it supports Infantino's leadership, while Concacaf called for a "comprehensive reckoning" of his presidency.
Mexico, one of the 2026 World Cup co-hosts, said it would not recognise any move to remove Infantino outside a vote involving all 211 Fifa members. Argentina's football association has also backed him, while European football's Uefa and Concacaf remain opposed.
Concacaf, which governs football in North and Central America and the Caribbean, said Infantino's proposal was "a symptom of leadership that has stopped putting football first". The regional body said the move reflected "this recent unilateral and egregious act of poor governance and leadership follows a pattern of missteps and similar behaviour".
However, unlike Uefa, Concacaf did not say it had lost confidence in Infantino. The federation did, though, call for a "comprehensive reckoning" of his presidency after the Fifa president abandoned plans to sell off stakes in the World Cup to private investors.
The Mexican Football Federation said in a statement:
The FMF [Mexican FA] supports president Infantino's leadership in continuing to promote the development of football through institutional strengthening
It then echoed the position of Conmebol, South America's governing body, by saying it would reject any attempt to remove Infantino without a vote involving all 211 Fifa members.
The FMF will neither recognise nor approve any process convened outside of that institutional framework, and it joins the call made by president Infantino to collectively continue developing football for the benefit of the 211 member associations
Conmebol did, however,
express its concern about the repeated unilateral actions taken without resorting to dialogue or the institutional mechanisms provided for dealing with this type of situationin relation to the same controversy.
Meanwhile, the football association of 2026 World Cup runners-up Argentina praised Infantino for recognising and apologising for his "errors". It described his decade-long tenure as Fifa president as
centred on the development of soccer worldwide and institutional strength based on a clear, stable, and transparent governance model
Infantino is also unanimously backed by the Confederation of African Football (CAF), but he faces opposition from Uefa and Concacaf. European teams could still boycott the World Cup because Uefa says the conditions it set have not been met, even after Infantino withdrew his investment proposal.
A Uefa statement said:
Assurances have to be made that such attempts to disfigure the game in this way will never be made again
It added:
These conditions have not been met.
Uefa has already said it has lost confidence in Infantino and described the Fifa Forward Enterprise (FFE) proposal as a
shabby, back room, opaque deal
The English FA has sent a letter withdrawing its support for Infantino, while Wales, Albania and Croatia are among other individual associations to have turned their back on the 56-year-old.
Before Infantino withdrew his proposal, the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) said it stood
in solidaritywith Uefa and Concacaf in opposition to the plans.
Infantino had offered all associations $40m (£30m) if they backed a proposal for private investment in its tournaments, including the men's and women's World Cups, through the FFE subsidiary.
During a meeting of Fifa executives in Morocco on Wednesday, the world governing body said
mistakesregarding FFE were
acknowledged, adding that it was
not the intentionfor the Fifa Council and members association to
feel excluded from the process and that the process should have been handled differently
Uefa's response repeated its opposition to the Fifa president.
Uefa made it abundantly clear in its statement on Saturday that it has lost confidence in Gianni Infantino's presidency. That position holds.
It added:
Yesterday's announcement that some people employed by the Fifa president (and whose careers depend on his favour) agree with him changes nothing.
Fifa has been approached for comment.
Why did Mexico and Argentina back Infantino?
Mexico backed Infantino because the FMF said it supports his leadership and rejects any process outside a vote of all 211 Fifa members. Argentina also defended him after his apology, saying his leadership has focused on worldwide development and transparent governance.
Why is Uefa still threatening a boycott?
Uefa says the conditions it set after the collapse of the private investment plan have not been met, so a boycott of European teams remains possible. It says it has lost confidence in Infantino and sees no change in the situation despite Fifa's acknowledgment of mistakes.
What was the FFE proposal?
The Fifa Forward Enterprise proposal would have involved private investment in Fifa tournaments, including the men's and women's World Cups, and Infantino had offered associations $40m (£30m) to support it. The plan was later abandoned after widespread criticism.
Key Facts
- Mexico has publicly backed Gianni Infantino, breaking ranks with Concacaf.
- Concacaf called for a "comprehensive reckoning" of Infantino's presidency.
- Argentina's football association also praised Infantino's leadership and apology for his "errors".
- Uefa still says its boycott threat remains because its conditions have not been met.
- Infantino had offered all associations $40m (£30m) to back the FFE proposal.
