UEFA searching for candidate to challenge Gianni Infantino in FIFA election

UEFA is intensifying efforts to find a candidate capable of challenging FIFA President Gianni Infantino in next March’s election, with Vice-President Laura McAllister saying the priority is to unite football’s confederations behind a reform agenda.

Speaking at the World Football Summit in Madrid, McAllister said UEFA’s campaign is focused on finding a candidate who can build broad international support and promote changes to football governance, rather than simply opposing Infantino for symbolic reasons.

In an interview with Reuters, McAllister rejected suggestions that opposition to Infantino has faded, arguing that meaningful change was always expected to be gradual.

“We always knew that things wouldn’t just change overnight. That would be naive. We’re taking things step by step, both legally in terms of the political context with an alternative candidate and in terms of the programme of governance reforms that we need to see,” McAllister said.

She stressed that UEFA’s objective is to support a candidate capable of winning the election rather than simply making a symbolic challenge.

McAllister made it clear that UEFA is not insisting on a European contender.

Instead, she said the governing body is looking for someone who can bring together football’s global confederations around a shared vision for reform.

“This is about the programme of change. We have to have a really clear template of what good governance looks like in global football,” she explained.

According to McAllister, the desired reforms include greater transparency, stronger accountability mechanisms, improved management of conflicts of interest, better whistleblower protections, and increased diversity in leadership positions.

The debate over FIFA’s leadership intensified after a proposal to sell a stake in FIFA competitions, including the World Cup, to private investors generated significant opposition.

McAllister said several UEFA member associations have withdrawn support for Infantino’s re-election campaign, adding that the push for reform extends beyond Europe.

“This was always about more than one person. All of the confederations feel strongly about the need for change,” she said.