Gianni Infantino has been abandoned by another Fifa vice-president after Hungarian Football Federation leader Sandor Csanyi questioned the president’s “professional judgment, ethical standards and leadership”.
In a strongly worded letter delivered to Infantino on Tuesday and initially acquired by the AFP news agency, Csanyi says he has “lost the confidence I previously placed in you”. He adds that the sudden removal of Fifa chief operating officer Kevin Lamour was the “final straw”.
Fifa dismissed Lamour on Monday after he publicly opposed Infantino last month over an abandoned proposal to sell private investors stakes in the World Cup.
Csanyi’s intervention adds to the growing opposition facing Infantino among senior figures in international football. The Hungarian banker is now the fifth of Fifa’s eight vice-presidents to demand his resignation.
Uefa president Aleksander Ceferin, Concacaf representative Victor Montagliani, Asian Football Confederation president Sheikh Salman bin Ebrahim al Khalifa and FA chair Debbie Hewitt have already stated their opposition.
Among Fifa’s vice-presidents, Infantino retains the backing of only Conmebol president Alejandro Domínguez, Confederation of African Football president Patrick Motsepe and Oceania representative Lambert Maltock.
Csanyi also serves on the 37-member Fifa Council, officially the organisation’s principal decision-making body, although Infantino has repeatedly bypassed it.
Csanyi wrote that he no longer believed Infantino could continue leading Fifa successfully and effectively while respecting the shared principles that had previously supported their cooperation. He identified Lamour’s unexpected dismissal as the decisive turning point.
The letter also referred to several disputed decisions surrounding this year’s World Cup, including Infantino’s participation in proposals to transfer control of Fifa competitions to outside organisations.
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