Gianni Infantino Continues FIFA Presidential Tradition for Over a Decade

VANCOUVER, FRIDAY – Gianni Infantino, the ninth President of FIFA, has confirmed that he will run for re-election as the head of football at the FIFA Extraordinary Congress 2027 in Rabat, Morocco. Without any competitors, Infantino is unlikely to face significant obstacles in replicating the tenure of his three predecessors who held control of FIFA for over 10 years.

His re-nomination as the incumbent candidate for FIFA President was announced by Infantino during the closing speech of the FIFA Congress in Vancouver, Canada, on Thursday (30/4/2026) evening local time or Friday (1/5/2026) early morning WIB.

"I would like to announce to you for the first time—211 member associations—that I will be a candidate in next year's FIFA presidential election," said Infantino, which was met with applause from the attendees.

"Thank you for your support over the last 10 years, your support today, your hard work, your progress, your love for the game, your commitment, and your passion," Infantino continued.

Infantino is expected to be the sole candidate again in the FIFA presidential election next year. This is similar to what he experienced at the FIFA Extraordinary Congress in 2019 and 2023.

The fiercest competition faced by Infantino occurred during the Extraordinary Congress in 2016. At that time, FIFA was conducting a re-election following Sepp Blatter's resignation due to allegations of involvement in a bribery case.

At that time, Infantino faced a fierce battle with Salman bin Ibrahim Al-Khalifa, the President of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) from Bahrain. The first round of the election was quite intense. Infantino only led by three votes, with 88 against 85 votes.

Infantino then took a decisive lead in the second round. The former UEFA Secretary General garnered 115 votes, while Salman received only 88 votes.

FIFA is in its best position, and we fully support him (Infantino) to be a candidate for the FIFA Presidency for the 2027-2031 term.

Referring to the latest FIFA Statute, the FIFA President can only serve for three terms. The Extraordinary Congress in 2027 will mark the third full term for Infantino as FIFA President.

Although he has participated in three FIFA presidential elections, the Extraordinary Congress of 2016 is not counted as a full term for Infantino. This is because that period is considered a transitional phase for FIFA. As a result, the count for Infantino's first full term as FIFA President only began in 2019.

"The last ten years have been a joyful time. I am proud to have brought FIFA back to football and football back to FIFA. This journey will continue," said Infantino.

According to FIFA records, Infantino will become the fourth consecutive President of FIFA to serve for more than 10 years. He follows Blatter (1998-2015), who held the position for 17 years and 122 days.

Previously, there was Joao Havelange who led FIFA for 24 years and 31 days from 1974 to 1998, followed by Stanley Rous who dominated football for 12 years and 222 days from 1961 to 1974.

If Blatter was the first FIFA President to step down due to a scandal, there were also two FIFA Presidents whose terms ended due to death. They were Daniel Burley Woolfall (1906-1918) and Arthur Drewry (1956-1961).

Although he will advance again for a full third term, Infantino will not be able to follow in the footsteps of Jules Rimet, who held control of FIFA for the longest time. The third president of FIFA served from August 1920 until June 1954. In total, the founder of the World Cup controlled world football for 33 years and 297 days.

Similar to Rimet, Infantino has also initiated a new world tournament. He introduced a new format for the Club World Cup, which will feature 32 clubs from all FIFA member confederations in the summer of 2025.

Salman, the President of AFC, confirmed AFC's support for Infantino's re-election. According to him, Infantino has led FIFA during its best period, particularly by bringing fairness to all member countries in accessing programs and hosting world-class tournaments.

"FIFA is in its best position, and we fully support him (Infantino) to be a candidate for the FIFA Presidency for the 2027-2031 term. This has been done by the AFC and Asian football since his election in 2016," said Salman.

The AFC has 47 votes in the FIFA Extraordinary Congress, ranking just behind the African Football Confederation (CAF) with 54 members and UEFA, which has 55 members. Additionally, the CAF has also expressed its support for Infantino.

"The association of CAF members unanimously agreed to support Gianni Infantino's re-election as President of FIFA for the 2027-2031 term," stated CAF in an official statement on its website.

The biggest challenge for Infantino actually comes from his home confederation, UEFA. Several leaders of European federations did not stand and applaud when Infantino announced his candidacy for re-election as FIFA President.

Several federations under UEFA have openly criticized Infantino's policies, one of which is the decision to award the FIFA Peace Prize to United States President Donald Trump.

"We want the (FIFA Peace Prize) to be canceled. It has no basis in the FIFA Congress. There is no legitimacy and it is outside FIFA's mandate. It is a political award. We ask the Ethics Committee to reconsider this award," said the President of the Norwegian Football Federation (NFF) Lise Klaveness, at the end of April (REUTERS).