UEFA and several other continental football bodies are considering staging their own international tournament if FIFA president Gianni Infantino refuses to resign.
The alliance is also examining ways to challenge the FIFA leadership, including boycotting meetings of the FIFA Council and its committees and refusing to approve decisions, according to The Times.
Aleksander Ceferin, UEFA president, is understood to be leading efforts alongside officials from CONCACAF and the Asian Football Confederation to force Infantino out of office.
The group is weighing the creation of separate international competitions if Infantino insists on remaining in power and seeks re-election next March. The plans could include a tournament designed to rival the World Cup.
UEFA already has a proposal for a global Nations League, after it was first asked to develop the concept in 2017. The competition could provide the framework for an alternative international event if the dispute with FIFA escalates.
The developing alliance has been formed after Infantino caused widespread alarm with a plan to sell stakes in the World Cup to private-sector investors. He was eventually forced to abandon the proposal, in what was seen as an embarrassing retreat.
Despite the backlash, the 56-year-old has remained determined to continue in his position.
Since details of the failed investment project emerged, Infantino has secured only 15 declarations of support from FIFA’s 211 member associations.
The Football Association has joined its counterparts in Wales in withdrawing support for Infantino ahead of next year’s FIFA presidential election. UEFA has also warned that England and all its other member associations would boycott the World Cup if Infantino’s proposal receives approval.
UEFA is additionally considering legal action against FIFA officials over the consequences of the crisis.
The Times reported that the alliance’s wider objective is to remove Infantino and “paralyse FIFA”. Its members are believed to be assessing whether coordinated political pressure, institutional non-cooperation and the creation of rival competitions could weaken his position.
A breakaway World Cup would represent a major escalation in the dispute between FIFA’s leadership and the continental confederations. The potential plan has emerged alongside the threat of boycotts and legal proceedings, with Infantino’s future now at the centre of the confrontation.
The proposed global Nations League has existed as an idea since 2017, but UEFA’s consideration of using it as a rival to the World Cup gives the project renewed significance. Any move to establish competing international competitions would further deepen the division between FIFA and the organisations that govern football across Europe, North and Central America and the Caribbean, and Asia.
Infantino’s decision on whether to remain in office and seek another term is therefore expected to be central to what happens next. If he does not step aside, his opponents have made clear that they are prepared to pursue alternatives outside FIFA’s existing tournament structure.
