FIFA top manager fired after publicly criticizing Infantino

FIFA Executive Fired After Public Criticism of Infantino

Tashkent, Uzbekistan – Podrobno.uz News Agency.

The International Federation of Football Associations (FIFA) has terminated the employment of Chief Operating Officer Kevin Lamour. This comes less than three weeks after he publicly spoke out against the organization's president, Gianni Infantino.

FIFA confirmed that its employment with the executive ended on August 17, stating that the parties "agreed to terminate their cooperation." No official reasons were given for the departure.

The conflict arose over the FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE) project, which envisioned the creation of a separate company to attract private investors and transfer to them commercial and ticket sales rights for all tournaments under the organization's auspices, including the World Cup. An attempt to sell 21% of FFE to private funds was met with strong opposition from UEFA, CONCACAF, and the Asian Football Confederation. The European Union even declared its readiness to boycott the World Cup if this initiative were to be implemented, but the idea was subsequently abandoned.

Kevin Lamour, who joined FIFA from UEFA in November 2024, publicly called the FFE "a one-man project" and claimed that the administration had been misled. Anticipating the consequences of his statement, he remarked, "If this means I lose my job, so be it."

This incident triggered a serious crisis of confidence in the organization's leader. Following the cancellation of the project, UEFA, CONCACAF, as well as the football associations of England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland, and Northern Ireland, withdrew their support for Gianni Infantino's candidacy for a fourth term as president. The next FIFA leadership elections will be held at a congress in March 2027.

It was previously reported that Gianni Infantino, head of the International Federation of Football Associations, managed to retain his post amid the high-profile scandal surrounding World Cup rights. Following a protracted seven-hour summit in Rabat, the FIFA Executive Committee, together with Secretary General Mattias Grafström, confirmed the powers of the current head of the organization.