Uefa president Aleksander Ceferin has ruled himself out of the running for the Fifa presidency but said Gianni Infantino would probably face a challenger if he seeks re-election next year following a global backlash over a plan to sell part of the World Cup to private investors.
Speaking to The Rest Is Politics: Leading podcast, which will air on Monday, Ceferin said he was not interested in succeeding Infantino despite growing uncertainty around the Fifa president's future.
"My credibility is much, much, much higher if I'm not interested in the position," Ceferin said.
Ceferin criticised the proposed World Cup investment project, describing it as a greater threat to the sport than the European Super League plan that Uefa successfully fought in 2021.
Ceferin said neither he nor Uefa had been informed about either the investment proposal or a separate Fifa Peace Prize, awarded in 2025 to US President Donald Trump, before they became public.
The Uefa chief, who said he had had no contact with Infantino since controversy erupted over the abandoned plan to carve off the commercial rights to the World Cup and sell 20 per cent of them to private investors.
He suggested the Swiss administrator would likely face opposition if he stands again in March.
"There are two options," Ceferin said. "One option is that he realises that he doesn't have the support, and that's not only a political support of the ones who vote, but the political support of football community, the political support of fans, the political support of the players, former players, coaches.
"And the second option that he goes to the elections in March, but in that case, I think he will have a candidate against him. I don't know yet who."
Who could run against Infantino?
Fifa's November 18 deadline for candidates to stand in March's elections could see some prominent names run against Infantino and deny him a fourth (and third full) term as president.
Sheikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa
The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) president is also Fifa’s senior vice president and has been one of the most outspoken critics of Infantino’s Fifa Forward Enterprise (FFE) plans, calling the proposals "totally unacceptable".
The AFC, along with Uefa and Concacaf, have been vocal in their opposition to Infantino's proposal to sell off stakes in future Fifa competitions.
On August 10, the three confederations released a joint statement, saying Infantino had broken trust “through deception” with the now-abandoned proposal and that he had “placed himself above the collective”. The statement called for a fully independent review of what had happened but stopped just short of openly calling for new leadership.
Sheikh Salman was defeated by the then newly appointed Infantino in the 2016 Fifa elections.
The 60-year-old Bahraini has held the AFC presidency since 2013, taking up the position after holding the same role with the Bahraini Football Association. He was elected for a fourth term in February 2023.
The Bahraini royal ran on a platform of larger tournament formats, like the expanded World Cup and revised regional cups, to give Asian teams more exposure.
Victor Montagliani
Montagliani is a vice president at Fifa and one of the frontrunners to challenge Infantino for the top job.
The Canadian is president of Concacaf, the Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football – a role he has held since 2016. His organisation played a key role in the hosting of the 2026 World Cup, jointly held in Canada, the US and Mexico.
Elected in 2016, Montagliani ran on the "One Concacaf" platform, pledging to restore institutional credibility and prioritise a football-first philosophy after years of corruption scandals.
Concacaf's 41 member associations rejected Fifa’s FFE proposal at a meeting earlier this month, and Montagliani, 60, is reported to be considering whether to join forces with Uefa and Concacaf to trigger a no-confidence vote in Infantino.
If 20 per cent of Fifa's 211 member nations (43 countries) make a request in writing, the Fifa Council must convene an Extraordinary Congress, according to Fifa's statutes.
Last week, he wrote a letter to Infantino asking him to stay away from a youth tournament in the Dominican Republic, saying his presence would overshadow the event due to mounting opposition to his leadership.
"As you may be aware, your proposed attendance has garnered significant media attention," Montagliani wrote.
"...the media will focus on this situation, which will unfortunately significantly take away from the technical nature of the CFU youth competition."
Patrice Motsepe
The South African billionaire businessman is seen as an outsider to challenge Infantino.
The organisation he heads, the Confederation of African Football (CAF), has backed Infantino since the Swiss came under fire following Fifa's aborted FFE plans.
Motsepe, 64, said earlier this month that the CAF welcomed Fifa's admission that mistakes had been made and backed its commitment to review the process.
He added that Infantino's future should be decided through the ballot box at next year's elections, as others have called for him to step down.
"I personally support Gianni Infantino," said the CAF president. "He's not just a good friend; he's a loyal friend. He's loyal to Africa. I come from a background where when people have been loyal to you, you never stab them in the back."
Following a meeting with Uefa president Cerefin in Salzburg on August 13 to discuss Infantino's future, Motsepe told Sky News: "If you want to take him out, go for elections; let the 211 member associations decide. Do that and the vote will express whether they've got confidence in him or not."
Motsepe was elected CAF president in 2021 and won a second four-year term in 2025. His plans to expand the Africa Cup of Nations from 24 to 28 teams from the 2027 edition has been met with widespread approval while he has been credited with the commercial success of the 2025 tournament, securing broadcast distribution in over 85 international markets.
