Rights groups accuse FIFA of silencing dissent after COO Lamour's exit

Aug 18 : FIFA's latest senior departure drew sharp criticism from human rights and labour groups on Tuesday, with campaigners saying Kevin Lamour's exit raised fresh concerns about governance and dissent inside soccer's global governing body.

FIFA said on Monday that chief operating officer Lamour had left the organisation, weeks after he publicly criticised president Gianni Infantino's plan to sell a stake in the commercial rights of the World Cup and other tournaments.

Lamour joined FIFA's senior leadership group in November 2024, having previously been part of the inner circle that campaigned for Infantino's election as FIFA president in 2016.

Minky Worden, director of global initiatives at Human Rights Watch, told Reuters that FIFA "needs more whistleblowers like Kevin Lamour".

Worden said FIFA had "a long history of breaking its own human rights rules", citing the awarding of the 2034 World Cup to Saudi Arabia, which she described as involving "a sham due diligence process".

She said Lamour and his team had made "good faith efforts" to meet rights defenders and survivors of abuse, assess risks within FIFA's operations and attempt to remedy some human rights abuses caused by FIFA or its government partners.

"FIFA needs more — not fewer — senior officials prepared to own and answer for its poor governance systems that lead to human rights catastrophes," Worden said.

Reuters has contacted FIFA for comment.

'TOXIC ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE'

Andrea Florence, executive director of the Sport & Rights Alliance, described Lamour's departure in comments to Reuters as "yet another sign that FIFA's toxic organisational structure needs major reform".

Florence said Lamour had played a key role in several human rights advances at FIFA,