Infantino faces showdown with internal critics as deadline for challengers nears

FIFA President Gianni Infantino will face his strongest internal critics Thursday as he seeks to shore up support ahead of a Nov. 18 deadline for challengers to declare their intention to run against him.

The Zurich meeting will be Infantino's first in-person encounter with the full FIFA Council since Infantino's plan to create a commercial subsidiary of the organization with President Donald Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, as a key investor. The proposal, called FIFA Forward Enterprise, was mothballed in the face of insurmountable backlash. "He's got to come out of this calming the waters — he's not gonna calm everybody, but he absolutely has to settle some of his bigger critics right now," said a person involved in global soccer at the highest levels, granted anonymity to speak candidly about internal matters. "Because if he falls or trips, I think it'll really be a setback for him."

The agenda for the meeting opens with remarks by Infantino and routine business, including a review of the 2026 World Cup, before turning to areas that could find FIFA's president at odds with the 37 members of the organization's main decision-making body. That includes the FIFA Peace Prize awarded to Trump last December, the failed FIFA Forward Enterprise proposal and the organization's disciplinary procedures, which could raise questions about Infantino's dealings with the White House around a red card issued to an American player during the World Cup.

"All the meaty stuff is at the very end," the person said. "He'll get through, but his wings will be clipped."

Among the critics Infantino must face are UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin, Concacaf President Victor Montagliani and Asian Football Confederation President Sheikh Salman bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa. All three lead confederations that have called on Infantino to resign while demanding an independent review of FIFA's governance.

Infantino has spent the nearly three months since the FIFA Forward proposal imploded working to steady his position. He has nodded to the need for an external review and continued a campaign of personal diplomacy, including trips to Colombia for the inauguration of President Abelardo de la Espriella and to the Caribbean Football Union's Under-14 Challenge Series in the Dominican Republic in August, which made for an awkward encounter with Montagliani , who urged him to stay away, according to media reports.

UEFA had threatened a boycott over the FIFA Forward proposal, but ultimately backed away from the threat. And Infantino is finding other ways to shore up support, particularly among developing countries where he's already built strong coalitions.

For instance, FIFA, this week, is proposing a $3.4 billion increase in development funding for member associations.

Infantino has also managed to keep much of his inner circle intact, including FIFA Secretary General Mattias Grafström, who remains in his post despite expressing concerns about Infantino's close association with Trump.

The governance fight is unfolding alongside a push by European Football Clubs, formerly the European Club Association, to expand its influence beyond 920 clubs across 55 countries and territories. At its general assembly in Copenhagen on Sept. 29, Chair Nasser Al-Khelaïfi announced a study of the feasibility of creating a global organization for clubs, provisionally called World Football Clubs. Such a group, whose members would control the players necessary to stage international tournaments, could serve as a powerful counterweight to FIFA.

Al-Khelaïfi has been seen as a promising candidate for FIFA's presidency, but he has said he is not interested. So far, retired Swiss defender Ramon Vega has emerged as the only challenger to Infantino in his bid for a fourth full term, which will be decided in an election of FIFA's 211 member nations next March.