Confederation of African Football (CAF) President Dr. Patrice Motsepe firmly declared on Thursday, August 13, 2026, that FIFA President Gianni Infantino’s leadership can only be decided through an official election, rebuffing mounting calls from rival confederations for the administrator’s immediate departure.
Motsepe’s intervention came shortly after the Football Association of Ireland (FAI) officially joined a growing coalition of European member associations revoking their endorsement of Infantino. The defection follows deep fallout over a controversial, now-abandoned plan to sell commercial stakes in the World Cup to private equity investors.
In an official statement released on Thursday morning, August 13, the FAI confirmed that its board had voted to withdraw the formal endorsement letter previously submitted ahead of FIFA’s upcoming presidential vote.
”Following an FAI Board Meeting, the decision was taken to rescind the letter of support that the Association supplied earlier this year,” the FAI stated. “It has since written to FIFA to explain its reasoning. The Association is grateful for the support that FIFA provides to Irish football, but recent events have raised significant concerns regarding governance, transparency and the lack of meaningful consultation.”
The Irish federation noted that given its own past governance reforms, it felt a “particular obligation to advocate for and uphold best practice” within global football leadership.
Speaking directly to Sky News on Thursday, Motsepe, who also serves as a FIFA Vice-President, insisted that opponents attempting to oust Infantino must respect democratic protocols rather than seeking an immediate resignation.
“If anybody has got any problem against anybody, whether it’s Gianni, whether it is anybody else, follow the process, follow the FIFA process, simple as that,” Motsepe urged. “If you want to take him out, go for elections; let the 211 member associations decide.”
Motsepe acknowledged Infantino’s recent missteps while defending his overall record: “He has apologized and said maybe there’s a different way these things should have been done, but we also take advice.”
The 54-vote African block remains a cornerstone of Infantino’s base, where support for his leadership stays strong despite intense pushback across Europe.
The crisis erupted after Infantino proposed the FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE) framework a private investment scheme designed to sell off minority equity stakes in FIFA commercial and event operations. Heavy opposition from UEFA, CONCACAF, and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) forced Infantino to scrap the project, but the incident severely fractured trust among member associations.
With the FAI joining the English and Welsh football associations in walking away, European leaders continue to press for change. However, with Motsepe holding the African bloc behind a ballot-box resolution, any resolution to the leadership battle appears headed straight for the next FIFA Congress.
