Aug 23 (Reuters) – UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin ruled himself out of running for the FIFA presidency but said Gianni Infantino would likely face a challenger if he seeks reelection next year following a global backlash over a plan to sell part of the World Cup to private investors.
Speaking to “The Rest Is Politics: Leading” podcast, which will air on Monday, Ceferin said he was not interested in succeeding Infantino despite growing uncertainty around the FIFA president’s future after his abandoned investment proposal.
“One reason is that I love UEFA and I love working here, and I think that at a certain point you have also, I mean, it’s time also to enjoy life a bit,” Ceferin said.
“Let’s see till when. And the second point is, my credibility is much, much, much higher if I’m not interested in the position.”
The UEFA chief, who said he had had no contact with Infantino since controversy erupted over the abandoned selloff plan, suggested the Swiss administrator would likely face opposition if he stands again in March.
“There are two options,” Ceferin said. “One option is that he realises that he doesn’t have the support, and that’s not only a political support of the ones who vote, but the political support of football community, the political support of fans, the political support of the players, former players, coaches.
“And the second option that he goes to the elections in March, but in that case, I think he will have a candidate against him. I don’t know yet who.”
Ceferin also criticised the proposed World Cup investment project, describing it as a greater threat to the sport than the European Super League plan that UEFA successfully fought in 2021.
“When you compared in the beginning this plan with the Super League plan, I think this plan is even worse than the Super League plan,” he said. “Football would be literally sold.”
Reuters has contacted FIFA for comment on Ceferin’s criticism of Infantino and the sport’s global governing body.
Ceferin said UEFA’s 55 member federations reacted with anger after details of the proposal emerged publicly and rejected suggestions that opposition came only from Europe’s wealthiest associations.
“On one side was England, Germany, who you understand don’t want that, because this money is not so big for them. But on the other side was San Marino, Cyprus, Liechtenstein … They said: we’re not for sale,” he said.
Ceferin rejected claims that Europe was obstructing efforts to help poorer football nations and took aim at what he described as attempts to portray UEFA as an entitled elite.
“What I hear is that they play on, you know, arrogant Europe is against us,” he said. “But I think someone should remind him (Infantino) that he is a European, and that he was supported by UEFA, which he forgot.”
Ceferin said neither he nor UEFA had been informed about either the investment proposal or a separate FIFA Peace Prize, awarded in 2025 to U.S. President Donald Trump, before they became public.
(Reporting by Lori EwingEditing by Toby Davis)
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