Fan organizations have launched a global petition demanding Gianni Infantino’s resignation and significant reforms to FIFA, the world football governing body. “The shameful attempt by a single person — the FIFA president himself — to sell the World Cup to private investors has revealed a betrayal football will never forget,” reads a statement circulated by Football Supporters Europe (FSE).
The call has also been joined by the Queer Football Fan Clubs network, a coalition of queer fan clubs from Germany, Switzerland, Austria, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and other countries. It is supported by continental fan organizations from Europe, Africa, and North America, as well as nearly 40 national associations in total. The fan groups say they represent hundreds of millions of people across all continents. From Germany come groups such as “Unsere Kurve”, “F_in Frauen im Fußball” and “BAFF”.
Facebook / FansEurope
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The 56-year-old Swiss official Infantino is under intense pressure. Particularly his publicly disclosed and later withdrawn plans to involve investors in future World Cup ventures have provoked widespread outrage across the football world. The European Union’s UEFA has in particular taken a confrontational stance.
The football community says Infantino’s aims were halted by football’s own institutions, but the project marks only the peak of a series of moves the FIFA president has sparked against the sport.
Fans: “Culture of Personal Power”
“From his covert involvement in the European Super League to the failed plan for a two-year World Cup cycle, from the coercive ticket policies at the 2026 FIFA World Cup to the culture of intimidation and the personal power he has established in international football,” the allegations read. “Gianni Infantino has betrayed his office and football as a whole.”
Now is the time to restore trust in precisely the institution that is supposed to protect and advance world football. The demands include full transparency in important decisions, robust oversight mechanisms, and consultation with federations, member associations, leagues, clubs, players, and fans.
QFF criticize pinkwashing and the downplaying of repressive regimes
The Queer Football Fan Clubs have repeatedly criticized Infantino, for example for downplaying homophobia in football (“Today I feel gay”). There are also accusations of pinkwashing: he speaks about diversity while tolerating human rights violations and the threat of the death penalty for LGBTQ people in host countries like Qatar or Saudi Arabia. FIFA’s strict ban on the rainbow captain’s armband under the threat of sporting penalties was viewed by the Queer Football Fan Clubs as a capitulation before authoritarian regimes and as a betrayal of the values of inclusion and human rights.
Most recently, former FIFA chief Sepp Blatter voiced support for electing Lise Klaveness, the openly lesbian president of the Norwegian Football Federation (TheColu.mn reported). FIFA will vote on March 18, 2027, in Rabat, Morocco, on whether Infantino will be re-elected — or whether there will be a new leader in world football.
