Gianni Infantino secured significant support for his bid for another term as FIFA president, as the president of the Asian Football Confederation, Sheikh Salman bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa, publicly expressed his support. Speaking at the AFC Congress in Tokyo, in the presence of Infantino himself, Sheikh Salman made it clear that the Asian soccer community is ready to support him in his bid for a second term.
This stance is particularly interesting, as just two months earlier, the head of the AFC had co-signed, along with the presidents of UEFA and CONCACAF, a strongly worded letter criticizing Infantino for the plan to sell World Cup-related shares to private investors. At the time, there had been harsh criticism of how the matter was handled and the way the specific plan had been presented.
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Now, however, Sheikh Salman appeared willing to put that controversy behind him. “We had some issues; we’ve discussed them in the past, but we shouldn’t link the two things. As one Asian family, we’re ready to move forward united, relying on Gianni,” he said, noting that he has spoken with several federations on the continent and considers their stance to be clear.
Asia’s support takes on particular significance ahead of the March election in Rabat. UEFA has 55 votes, Africa 54, Asia 46, CONCACAF 35, Oceania 11, and CONMEBOL 10. Combined with Infantino’s strong influence in Africa and South America, the AFC’s move significantly strengthens his position.
The deadline for submitting candidacies against Infantino is November 18, and so far no opponent has emerged. CONCACAF President Victor Montagliani and UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin have hinted that they do not intend to run for the presidency.
For his part, Infantino thanked Sheikh Salman and praised his work at the AFC, emphasizing that he will continue to have FIFA’s support and cooperation. When asked later about the Asian confederation’s public stance, he simply stated that he felt “great” about the support he had received.
*photo source: AP
