FIFA says it will answer UEFA questions over Infantino controversies, but won’t say when

FIFA says it plans to address queries raised by European football’s governing body UEFA regarding Gianni Infantino ’s leadership, but has stopped short of promising a response before the candidacy declaration cutoff for next year’s FIFA presidential election. A letter from UEFA , viewed by the Press Association, sought clarity on a series of issues on behalf of European representatives on the FIFA Council by 2 November, 16 days before that candidate deadline. The delegates had challenged Infantino in person during a Council gathering in Zurich last week, before being instructed to put their concerns in writing. UEFA’s letter on Monday, sent from its secretary general Theodore Theodoridis to his FIFA counterpart Mattias Grafstrom, stressed that answers to questions around Infantino’s controversial World Cup private investor plan, United States President Donald Trump ’s influence over and involvement in FIFA’s business, plus a host of other topics could not be deferred until the next Council meeting, which is scheduled for 16 December. UEFA has lost confidence in Infantino over his handling of the World Cup private investor plan, and has said it will identify a credible alternative candidate to stand against him in next year’s election (AP) A FIFA spokesperson insisted replies would be given, but made no mention of whether that would be by 2 November. “The FIFA Governance Regulations state that Council meetings and their associated documentation are confidential,” the spokesperson said. “While FIFA intends to reply to questions submitted by its Council members it has no intention of breaching confidentiality by commenting on internal communication and/or documentation to media. “FIFA considers respect for these Regulations to be a function of respect for the Council itself and for its individual members. FIFA will always maintain this respect and will not be drawn into any exchange with any third parties that undermines this.” The UEFA letter sought answers on a wide range of topics, including the Folarin Balogun case, the World Cup final half-time show and the introduction of hydration breaks at the finals earlier this summer. UEFA General Secretary Theodore Theodoridis (Reuters) UEFA has lost confidence in Infantino over his handling of the World Cup private investor plan, and has said it will identify a credible alternative candidate to stand against him in next year’s election. UEFA’s letter on Monday raised concerns around the independence of that election process. It said the chair of the electoral committee, Bruno Chiomento, has known Infantino for 20 years and had been at the World Cup for its full five-week duration with all his expenses covered by FIFA. The UEFA letter asked: “In view of the importance of ensuring the independence and perceived impartiality of the electoral process, would FIFA consider Mr Chiomento’s recusal and replacement by his deputy for the duration of the presidential election?”