Nordic soccer associations have ‘lost confidence’ in FIFA boss Infantino

STOCKHOLM (AP) — Six Nordic national soccer associations piled more pressure on embattled FIFA President Gianni Infantino on Sunday by saying they had “lost confidence” in his leadership.

The associations from Sweden, Norway, Finland, Denmark, Iceland and the Faeroe Islands issued a joint statement to say they “view the organization’s governance and decision-making at the highest level with great concern.”

The associations said they stand united with European soccer governing body UEFA and support the measures it has already proposed.

“We expect FIFA to provide binding guarantees that the organization’s governance or competitions will never again be opened up to private ownership,” the associations said.

Infantino faces pressure to resign after his plans to sell future World Cup profits to private investors triggered a backlash and criticism from UEFA, the Asian Football Confederation and CONCACAF, the governing body for North and Central American and Caribbean soccer.

“We also support the call by AFC, CONCACAF and UEFA for a fully independent external investigation into the events surrounding the FIFA Forward Enterprise proposal,” the Nordic associations said.

The statement called for FIFA to “initiate a comprehensive and independent review of its governance framework” to see whether it is adhering to the “independence, checks and balances, transparency and accountability that were intended when FIFA adopted its reform program in 2016.”

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