Cheferin calls on Infantino to resign

UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin, a Slovenian, said he is “not interested” in succeeding Swiss-Italian Gianni Infantino, but warned that the FIFA president, who is facing mounting criticism, must resign or face a challenger for the leadership in March.

Infantino has come under increasing pressure to step down as head of the global governing body of football, due to his plan—later retracted—to secure private investments in FIFA tournaments, including the men’s and women’s World Cups.

At the same time, UEFA, which oversees the administration of European football, threatened to boycott FIFA competitions, while several other continental and national federations have withdrawn their support for Infantino.

However, Čeferin ruled out running to succeed Infantino at the helm of world football. The 58-year-old Slovenian said on Monday in the podcast “The Rest Is Politics”: “I am not interested, for two reasons; first, I love UEFA and I love working here, and I believe that at some point it is also time to enjoy life a little.”

Čeferin had been one of Infantino’s most prominent critics since the latter revealed his controversial plans to seek private investments in a company that manages FIFA tournaments.

The Slovenian now believes that Infantino’s once-secure position has become threatened. Čeferin expects the Swiss-Italian to either step down or face a challenger if he seeks re-election at the next FIFA Congress in Morocco in March 2027.

Infantino, the former UEFA Secretary General, enjoyed broad support from European countries when he succeeded Swiss Sepp Blatter as FIFA president in 2016.