Mauritanian Football Federation president and FIFA Council member Ahmed Yahya has backed Gianni Infantino's continued leadership of world football, despite criticism of his proposed private investment in the commercial rights to FIFA competitions.
In remarks delivered in French and published by SportyTV on Thursday, October 15, Yahya said Infantino had wanted the project to serve football and its development. He suggested that the approach or the way it was handled had fallen short, rather than the objective that the FIFA president was pursuing.
Yahya pointed to changes in funding for national associations. He said grants had stood at one million dollars for each four-year cycle when Infantino became president. The proposal now on the table, he added, would allow each association to receive 25 million dollars over four years, 25 times the level he cited for a decade earlier.
He also argued that expanding the World Cup to 48 teams had demonstrated its importance for global football after facing initial opposition. Other projects could follow, he said, adding: 'We see Gianni as the right person to continue leading football.'
FIFA Council and the private investment plan
The interview was published as the FIFA Council met in Zurich on Thursday, its first meeting since the disclosure of a plan to sell investors a stake in a company managing the commercial rights to the World Cup and Club World Cup. According to The Associated Press, the proposed deal involved at least a 20% stake for $4.2 billion before it was withdrawn following widespread opposition.
After the meeting, FIFA said Infantino had proposed raising total funding to $25 million per association for 2027–2030. The rules still need to be finalised, with Council approval in December and Congress approval in March 2027 also required. The proposed amount has not therefore already been approved or paid out.
Infantino apologised for mistakes in communication and consultation over the investment proposal, which FIFA confirmed had been permanently withdrawn. AP reported that English FA chair and FIFA vice-president Debbie Hewitt demanded answers to the questions raised and said that, without them, he would not be fit to remain FIFA president.
The dispute comes ahead of FIFA's presidential election in Rabat in March 2027, as European football leaders seek to oppose Infantino's continued tenure. Yahya was among the leaders of six Arab football associations who backed him in August, alongside those of Morocco, Qatar, Egypt, Sudan and Lebanon.
