Fifa hits back at 'concerted campaign' to undermine Infantino

Fifa has accused its critics of running a coordinated campaign to weaken the organisation and remove Gianni Infantino, releasing a sharply worded statement on Saturday in response to what it called "unsubstantiated assertions and demonstrably false claims." The statement came after a Daily media report alleged that a woman said to be Infantino's lover received a severance payment from Uefa following an affair while Infantino was Uefa's general secretary. A Fifa spokesperson told the media that Infantino "strongly denies" the claims and described them as "categorically untrue." In its own response, Fifa argued that "speculation and insinuation should not be presented as fact" and suggested that some opponents were trying to achieve by allegation what they could not achieve through Fifa's democratic procedures. Infantino has faced mounting opposition from Uefa and European federations since the collapse of his Fifa Forward Enterprise (FFE) project. Under the plan, a new company would have managed Fifa's commercial and ticketing rights, with 21% sold to a private investment firm. Uefa says it has lost confidence in Infantino and its threat to boycott Fifa events remains in place, insisting it has not received assurances that FFE cannot be revived. Norwegian Football Federation (NFF) president Lise Klaveness also called on Infantino to resign on Friday. Fifa responded by pointing out that Infantino was democratically elected by member associations and still holds their mandate. It said the campaign against him was increasingly evident and that those involved "should not seek to achieve through allegation, insinuation or misinformation what they cannot achieve through Fifa's established democratic processes." Most opposition to Infantino continues to come from Europe. The Mexican federation broke with Concacaf to back Infantino and echoed Conmebol's position that any move to remove him should require a vote involving all 211 Fifa member countries. Infantino also has the unanimous support of the 54 nations in the Confederation of African Football. Earlier this week, Infantino summoned members of Fifa's management board to a meeting in Rabat, Morocco. In a statement issued on behalf of Infantino and secretary general Mattias Grafstrom, Fifa apologised for the FFE proposal but said it would no longer tolerate attacks on its integrity, good governance and due process. Saturday's statement was similarly firm. "Change inevitably challenges established interests, but disagreement with that change cannot justify efforts to undermine the democratic mandate of Fifa's president or the institution he was elected to lead," it said. "Fifa welcomes legitimate scrutiny. But scrutiny is not a licence to distort facts, amplify unsubstantiated allegations or manufacture distractions designed to undermine progress. Where reporting is inaccurate or misleading, Fifa will challenge it directly and vigorously."