{"id":721967,"date":"2026-08-01T01:36:10","date_gmt":"2026-08-01T01:36:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/721967\/"},"modified":"2026-08-01T01:36:10","modified_gmt":"2026-08-01T01:36:10","slug":"andy-burnham-prime-minister-of-the-united-kingdom-demands-gianni-infantinos-immediate-resignation-he-is-the-wrong-man-to-lead-fifa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/721967\/","title":{"rendered":"Andy Burnham, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, demands Gianni Infantino’s immediate resignation: \u201cHe is the wrong man to lead FIFA\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"

UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham has become the latest high-profile figure to call for Gianni Infantino<\/a> to step down as FIFA <\/a>president, claiming the Swiss football administrator is no longer the right person to lead world football.<\/p>\n

Burnham criticized Infantino\u2019s controversial plans to introduce private investment into the FIFA World Cup, describing the proposal as an \u201coutrageous suggestion\u201d. The Prime Minister argued that football\u2019s biggest tournament should remain centered around supporters rather than financial interests from wealthy investors.<\/p>\n

Argentina’s Nicol\u00e1s Tagliafico and Caro Calvagni escape to paradise after the World Cup<\/p>\n

Speaking to reporters in Sheffield, Burnham said the very fact the proposal had been considered showed his concerns about FIFA\u2019s leadership.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis was an outrageous suggestion. The idea that it could even be brought forward shows that, in my view, [he] is the wrong man to lead the organization,\u201d said Burnham.<\/p>\n

The Everton fan joined a growing list of politicians and football figures questioning Infantino\u2019s position after widespread opposition to the plans emerged.<\/p>\n

Infantino\u2019s proposal aims to attract around \u00a33.1 billion in private investment into the World Cup, but the idea has faced strong resistance from football organizations across the globe.\u00a0<\/p>\n

UEFA has opposed the plans, while Concacaf and the Asian Football Confederation have also raised concerns over the potential impact on the tournament\u2019s future.<\/p>\n

FIFA president faces mounting pressure from football leaders<\/p>\n

The opposition has intensified as more officials have challenged the direction of FIFA under Infantino\u2019s leadership.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Kevin Lamour, FIFA\u2019s chief operating officer, publicly criticized the proposal, describing it as a project driven by one individual and urging football leaders to consider whether the organization was heading in the right direction.<\/p>\n

“Our mission – the mission of the hundreds of passionate, dedicated, and exemplary Fifa employees – is to serve football,\u201d Lamour said in his statement.<\/p>\n

“A president must bring people together, unite them, and inspire them. Today, we are experiencing the opposite.<\/p>\n

“If that means I lose my job, then so be it. I will understand and respect that decision. At least I’ll sleep well tonight.”<\/p>\n

Further pressure arrived when Carlos Cordeiro, Infantino\u2019s senior adviser on global strategy and governance, resigned from his position. Cordeiro reportedly described the proposal as a poor deal for football and warned it could damage the sport\u2019s future.<\/p>\n

The Asian Football Confederation also announced that it stood alongside European and North American football authorities in opposing the plans.<\/p>\n

The AFC said the World Cup\u2019s strength comes from global participation and unity, warning that any proposal threatening that principle needed to be reconsidered.<\/p>\n

The political backlash in Britain has continued to grow. Chancellor John Healey backed the Football Association and UEFA\u2019s stance, saying the World Cup should not be treated as something available for sale.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy also supported the opposition, insisting that football belongs to fans rather than billionaire investors.<\/p>\n

Infantino\u2019s future could now become a major issue within FIFA. The organization has 211 member nations, meaning a majority of 106 votes would be needed for certain decisions.\u00a0<\/p>\n

With UEFA, Concacaf and Asian football bodies opposing the proposal, Infantino could struggle to secure enough support.<\/p>\n

While the FIFA president has not suggested he plans to resign, calls for change are increasing.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham has become the latest high-profile figure to call for Gianni Infantino to step…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":721968,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[59,57,58,50,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-721967","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-united-kingdom","tag-gb","tag-great-britain","tag-greatbritain","tag-news","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/721967","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=721967"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/721967\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/721968"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=721967"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=721967"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=721967"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}