Italy withdraws Infantino support ahead of FIFA presidential election

Gianni Infantino has suffered another political setback ahead of the next FIFA presidential election, scheduled for March 2027. The Italian Football Federation (FIGC) announced that it was withdrawing its support for the FIFA president’s candidacy. The decision removes backing from one of the European federations that had previously stood behind the Swiss-Italian administrator.

The FIGC’s move comes after Infantino became the focus of an intense media and internal controversy surrounding his abandoned plan to create a commercial company within FIFA. The project was described as a major governance initiative, but it failed to proceed after the dispute surrounding it grew. Since then, several figures and federations have begun to clarify their positions before the presidential vote.

Italian federation president Giovanni Malagò said the FIGC would continue working with UEFA and the other European federations. He said that cooperation would promote a vision of football based on “merit, solidarity, sustainability and the central role of supporters”. The statement places the Italian federation’s future position clearly within the European football structure rather than alongside Infantino’s recent initiatives.

The FIGC also linked its decision directly to UEFA and its president, Aleksander Čeferin. The federation said it wanted to express its position “clearly and transparently” and that it was acting in full agreement with UEFA over Infantino’s recent proposals concerning governance and the development of international competitions. The wording makes the withdrawal more than an isolated national decision. It presents Italy as part of a coordinated European response.

Malagò said the FIGC recognised a model based on dialogue, listening and shared responsibility. In his view, that model had allowed football to develop and innovate while defending its founding principles. The federation’s position therefore concerns both the content of Infantino’s recent plans and the way international football decisions should be discussed and adopted.

The competition timetable gives the decision immediate importance. The FIFA presidency will be contested in March 2027, so the period before the election is already becoming a phase of public positioning. Infantino had been massively supported before the latest controversy, but the Italian announcement shows that his European backing is no longer secure. The FIGC is now aligned with UEFA, which has taken a firm position against his continuation in office.

Italy’s withdrawal does not establish how every European federation will vote, and it does not by itself determine the result of the election. It does, however, add a significant national federation to the group challenging Infantino’s direction. The dispute is now defined by two competing approaches: Infantino’s recent proposals on governance and international competition development, and the European model described by the FIGC, centred on consultation, shared responsibility, sporting merit, solidarity, sustainability and supporters.

The position of the French Football Federation remains unannounced. French opposition has been suggested publicly, but the federation has not issued a formal decision on Infantino’s possible re-election. For now, the next confirmed development is likely to come through further declarations from European federations as the March 2027 FIFA election approaches. Italy’s choice has made the division within European football more visible and has left Infantino facing a broader challenge than the controversy over his commercial-company project alone.