Media reports have revealed a major surprise: prominent officials in African football have held discussions with Mattias Grafström, Secretary-General of the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA), to gauge his interest in running against Gianni Infantino.
According to the British newspaper "The Guardian," up to 15 African federations are now prepared to withdraw their support for Infantino when he seeks re-election as FIFA President next year.
This comes despite the Confederation of African Football (CAF) confirming that its Executive Committee unanimously reaffirmed its support for the 56-year-old Swiss president, who is facing increasing pressure.
Grafström himself had previously defended Infantino's project (FIFA Forward Enterprise). In a memo issued three days after abandoning the plan to sell 20% of the World Cup's commercial rights, he told staff that unstable people, moments, and unfortunate incidents come and go.
However, the 45-year-old second-in-command at FIFA soon reverted to aligning with Infantino. Within 24 hours, he signed a letter expressing full support for the FIFA President, before informing staff via email of the dismissal of Operations Director Kevin Lamour, who had sharply criticized the FIFA Forward Enterprise proposal.
The report noted that Grafström's initial opposition to Infantino's plans encouraged some of the latter's opponents in Africa to attempt to explore his readiness to compete in next year's elections.
The Guardian reported that "the presidents of two African federations spoke separately with Grafström by phone over the past week; he was reportedly surprised by the contact and has not yet taken a decisive stance, either accepting or declining."
It added: "In Africa, they believe Mattias can unite all the continents and move forward, but we do not know his current position. If he manages to bring everyone together, he will gain some support. Mattias is a very open person who always listens to what we think."
It is worth noting that Grafström was appointed permanent Secretary-General of FIFA in May 2024, having previously served in the role on an interim basis. Over the past two years, he worked with the Confederation of African Football (CAF) alongside several African federations.
The report indicated that African federations feel resentful due to the decision to hold the Africa Cup of Nations once every four years instead of every two—a decision many believe FIFA imposed on them at the end of last year.
Only four out of the 21 members of the CAF Executive Committee declared their support for Infantino during their recent meeting on August 7. Among them were CAF President Patrice Motsepe and his Moroccan deputy, Fouzi Lekjaa.
With Africa holding 54 seats within FIFA, the continent could become key to efforts aimed at ousting Infantino, given that any challenger needs votes from 106 out of FIFA's 211 member associations to succeed.
