Ex-FIFA governance chief says Infantino ineligible for re-election, members urged to act

Nov 3 : Gianni Infantino cannot stand for a fourth term as FIFA president in 2027 under the body's statutes, former head of the FIFA Governance Committee Miguel Maduro said on Tuesday as human rights organisation FairSquare wrote to member associations urging them to declare him ineligible.

FairSquare had previously urged FIFA to rule that Infantino is ineligible to seek another term as president, arguing he has already served the maximum three terms permitted under the body's statutes.

But Infantino successfully argued that his first spell in charge when he was elected at an Extraordinary Congress in 2016 following Sepp Blatter's resignation, should not count towards that limit because it completed an interrupted mandate.

In December 2022, the FIFA Council had "unanimously confirmed" that the period between 2016 and 2019 does not count as a term of office for Infantino but FairSquare said the reasoning had never been made public.

"Article 33, paragraph two of the FIFA statutes is very clear when it says no person may serve as president for more than three terms," Maduro told reporters.

"Gianni Infantino has been elected three times, he's been president of FIFA for three terms. So in my view, there's no way to reconcile another presidency of Infantino."

Maduro is a Portuguese lawyer who was removed from his post at FIFA in 2017 after he blocked Russian Deputy Prime Minister Vitaly Mutko from being re-elected to its top committee.

He added the wording of the rule makes no exception for a shortened term.

"The text of the provision is clear, it talks about three terms. It makes no distinction on whether these terms are complete terms or incomplete terms, four-year terms or terms that may be shorter than the four years," Maduro