Fifa president Gianni Infantino has called for an independent, external evaluation of the organization's governance rules. The proposal comes as the leadership of world football faces mounting scrutiny regarding major strategic decisions and institutional transparency.
In correspondence directed to Fifa council members and distributed across global member associations, the leadership outlined a pair of formal reforms. These changes are scheduled for evaluation during an upcoming council gathering slated for next month.
The first initiative involves commissioning outside experts to audit the current decision-making framework surrounding major strategic projects. The second initiative introduces a structured consultation window to gather feedback from regional confederations, individual member associations, and key industry stakeholders.
This consultation process aims to evaluate the distribution of authority among the presidency, the bureau, the governing council, and the broader congress. Furthermore, it seeks practical approaches to enhance accountability, operational clarity, and institutional involvement.
The push for administrative changes follows intense friction regarding a controversial commercial venture known as the Fifa Forward Enterprise proposal. That initiative would have established a separate corporate entity to oversee commercial and ticketing operations for global tournaments, including the World Cup, while relinquishing a minority stake to private investors.
Resistance has emerged from several fronts within the sport. Leadership figures from European and North American governing bodies recently pressed for financial distributions from capital reserves directly to member associations.
High-ranking officials within the global governing body have also demanded complete transparency and the disclosure of all internal documentation related to the commercial project. Meanwhile, European football authorities previously pursued legal avenues in the United States courts to secure those records.
Fifa has defended its leadership against those legal actions, characterizing the challenges as an orchestrated public relations campaign directed against the administration.
The developments arrive as the Swiss-Italian administrator prepares for the upcoming electoral cycle. Candidates wishing to contest the presidency must finalize their nominations by November, ahead of the election scheduled for March 2027.
Reporting based on coverage first published by BBC Sport. Read the original report at BBC Sport.
