Former FIFA Governance Committee chairman Miguel Maduro has argued that Gianni Infantino cannot seek a fourth term as FIFA president in 2027 under the organisation’s statutes. Meanwhile, human rights organisation FairSquare has written to FIFA member associations urging them to oppose his eligibility for another term.
FairSquare has previously called on FIFA to rule Infantino ineligible, arguing that he has already completed the maximum three terms permitted under the organisation’s statutes.
However, Infantino maintains that his first period in office, following his election in 2016 at an extraordinary congress after Sepp Blatter’s resignation, should not count towards the limit because he took over the remainder of his predecessor’s interrupted term.
In December 2022, the FIFA Council unanimously confirmed that Infantino’s 2016-2019 period in office did not count as a full term. FairSquare, however, points out that FIFA has never made public the reasoning behind that decision.
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“Article 33, paragraph 2, of the FIFA Statutes is absolutely clear. It states that no person may serve as president for more than three terms,” Maduro told reporters.
“Gianni Infantino has been elected three times and has served as FIFA president for three terms. In my view, there is no way to justify another presidential term for him.”
The Portuguese lawyer left his FIFA position in 2017 after blocking the re-election of Russian Deputy Prime Minister Vitaly Mutko to the organisation’s top committee.
Maduro also stressed that the wording of the statute makes no exceptions for shorter terms.
“The text is clear and refers to three terms. It does not distinguish between full and incomplete terms, or between four-year terms and those that may last for a shorter period,” he said.
Last month, Infantino’s prospects of securing re-election received a significant boost when the head of Asian football publicly endorsed his candidacy. His backing from the continental confederations gives him a strong position among FIFA’s 211 member associations, which hold voting rights.
Maduro Raises Concerns Over FIFA Accountability
Maduro also questioned the effectiveness of FIFA’s governance framework, arguing that the organisation lacks adequate mechanisms to scrutinise and hold its president accountable, particularly when interpretations of its rules could work in his favour.
He said FIFA’s existing safeguards against presidential power had weakened because of the reduced independence of its oversight bodies.
“Recent evidence does not suggest that effective oversight exists. On the contrary, it creates the impression of a president who appears able to make decisions and act without meaningful constraints,” he said.
FairSquare said it had contacted 52 FIFA member associations, seeking their support in challenging Infantino’s eligibility. The organisation has yet to receive any responses.
However, FairSquare director and co-founder Nicholas McGeehan told Reuters that he would meet officials from the Norwegian Football Federation on Wednesday.
Norway has already supported a formal complaint by FairSquare against Infantino, accusing him of breaching FIFA’s political neutrality rules.
“We hope the Norwegian federation, which has already approached the Ethics Committee and the Governance Committee, will also set an example in this case. However, other federations must also take action. The responsibility for defending basic rules cannot continually fall on the Norwegians,” McGeehan said.
Maduro concluded that FIFA member associations appear reluctant to act independently because of what he described as a “climate of fear” within the organisation.
(Source: AMNA)