The European body maintains distrust towards the Swiss leader and will not lift the measures announced following the FIFA Forward Enterprise project, which has been definitively canceled
The crisis between FIFA and UEFA has added a new chapter and shows no signs of resolution. Despite Gianni Infantinowithdrawing the controversial projectFIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE) to commercialize part of the World Cup rights and offering apologies during an emergency meeting in Morocco, the European body confirmed that it will maintain the boycott of its teams against competitions organized by the entity that governs world football.
UEFA considered the gestures made by FIFA to be insufficient and emphasized that the conditions it had set to reverse the measure have still not been met. "The federations affiliated with UEFA were very clear about the conditions related to the non-participation in FIFA competitions. Firstly, the proposals for the privatization of the main competitions had to be withdrawn, and secondly, guarantees had to be provided that there would never again be attempts of this kind to distort football. These conditions have not been met", the entity expressed through a statement.
UEFA believes that Infantino did not meet all of its demands and will maintain its boycott of tournaments organized by FIFA
The harshest point of the statement was directed straight at Infantino. "UEFA made it very clear in its statement on Saturday that it has lost confidence in Gianni Infantino's presidency. That position remains. The announcement yesterday that some people employed by the FIFA president (whose careers depend on his favor) agree with him changes nothing", it added.
The statements were a response to the statement issued by FIFA after the meeting held in Rabat, where it asserted that Infantino retained the "full support" of the Council and the Executive Committee. However, the European stance made it clear that the Swiss leader's apology was not enough to de-escalate the conflict.
The dispute arises just over seven months before the 77thFIFA Congress scheduled for March 18, 2027 in Morocco, where the next presidential elections for the 2027-2031 term will take place, in which Infantino will seek to remain in office. In this context, the confrontation with UEFA, led by Aleksander Čeferin, takes on even greater political weight.
Infantino is running for re-election in FIFA
Furthermore, the continuation of the boycott could have immediate sporting consequences. The most affected tournament is the Women's U-20 World Cup, which will begin on September 5 in Poland. The host country, along with Spain, England, France, Italy, and Portugal, has qualified for the event, so uncertainty still persists about what will happen with the European teams if the measure remains in effect.
Meanwhile, the tension between the two main bodies of international football continues to escalate and threatens to extend to the upcoming competitions organized by FIFA, amid a dispute that also has the backdrop of the race for the presidency of the organization in 2027.
