CAF unanimously reaffirms support for Gianni Infantino after FIFA apologizes over handling of withdrawn investment proposal
Halis Sünnetci
07 August 2026•Update: 07 August 2026
İSTANBUL
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) unanimously reaffirmed its support for FIFA President Gianni Infantino on Thursday, despite acknowledged mistakes by the world football body in the handling of a withdrawn proposal to sell stakes in FIFA competitions to private investors.
The CAF Executive Committee endorsed a statement issued Wednesday by Infantino and FIFA Secretary General Mattias Grafstrom concerning the FIFA Forward Enterprise proposal.
“We are committed to continue working together with FIFA, its Member Associations, other Football Confederations and stakeholders to safeguard and adhere to governance, due process, and transparency global best practices and to contribute to the development and growth of Football worldwide,” CAF said in a statement.
“The CAF EXCO also unanimously reconfirmed its support for FIFA President Gianni Infantino and thanked him for his support for African Football, over the years. President Infantino, FIFA Secretary General Mattias Grafstrom and the FIFA Administration were also thanked for organizing a very successful FIFA World Cup 2026,” it added.
FIFA issued its statement after an emergency meeting Wednesday in Rabat, Morocco amid mounting pressure on Infantino over the proposal, which involved selling stakes in FIFA competitions, including the World Cup.
FIFA Secretary General Grafstrom and members of the FIFA Management Board who attended the meeting reaffirmed their support for Infantino while acknowledging mistakes in the handling of the proposal.
“The meeting also addressed the FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE) proposal, where mistakes made were acknowledged. It was agreed that it was not the intention for the FIFA Council and FIFA Member Associations to feel excluded from the process and that the process should have been handled differently. It was further acknowledged that errors were also made after the proposal was leaked to media,” FIFA said.
“In a separate letter to the FIFA Council and FIFA Member Associations, an apology was made for these errors together with a commitment to ensure they do not happen again. A review will now be conducted, and a report will be presented to the FIFA Council at its next scheduled meeting,” it added.
