By Daniel Oluwatobiloba Popoola
The Norwegian Football Federation, one of the fiercest critics of FIFA President Gianni Infantino for several years, will formally call for his resignation, its head, Lise Klaveness, announced on Friday, declaring that he no longer commands the trust required to lead world football’s governing body.
“He does not have the institutional trust required to lead FIFA in a stable manner in the current climate. There is no turning back for Gianni Infantino,” Klaveness told reporters, a day after a meeting of the Norwegian federation’s governing bodies, which examined, among other issues, the fate of the much-criticised FIFA chief. “We are going to ask the FIFA president to resign now,” she said.
The demand comes as Infantino, president of FIFA since 2016 and currently the only declared candidate, stands for re-election to a fourth and final term next March.
To secure re-election, he must win a majority of the 211 votes from the organisation’s member federations, with candidates required to declare their intention to run by November 18.
The Italian-Swiss lawyer has come under mounting pressure since the collapse, revealed last week, of his plan to open FIFA competitions, including the World Cup, to private investors, a setback that has intensified calls from critics, including Norway, for a change in leadership at the helm of world football’s governing body.
