Fifa sacks COO Kevin Lamour after criticism of Infantino's FFE plan
Fifa has dismissed its chief operating officer Kevin Lamour, the governing body said, on 17 August 2026, less than three weeks after he publicly criticised president Gianni Infantino’s abandoned plan to sell stakes in Fifa competitions, BBC Sport has been told.
A Fifa spokesperson said: "the working relationship between Fifa and Kevin Lamour as Chief Operating Officer has ended on 17 August 2026. "Fifa thanks Kevin for his two years of service and wishes him the best of luck for the future." Staff were informed by secretary general Mattias Grafstrom in an email on Monday evening, in which he said the organisation and Lamour had "agreed to part ways". Lamour joined Fifa in November 2024, having previously served as deputy general secretary at Uefa, and was two layers of management below Infantino.
Last month Lamour publicly criticised the controversial Fifa Forward Enterprise (FFE) proposal, calling it "the project of one person" and saying "the time has now come for football political leaders to ask themselves the right questions and make the right decisions". He told colleagues Fifa's own administration had been "deceived" about the now abandoned project and said: "Our mission - the mission of the hundreds of passionate, dedicated, and exemplary Fifa employees - is to serve football". On his duty of loyalty he added: "If that means I lose my job, then so be it," and said: "I will understand and respect that decision. At least I'll sleep well tonight."
The FFE plan, proposed by Infantino, would have created a new company to manage the commercial and ticketing rights of all Fifa competitions, including World Cups. FFE was aborted after Infantino's plan to sell 21% of the company to private investment companies received widespread criticism, and Infantino has been described in coverage as being under increasing pressure over the proposal.
Several confederations publicly opposed the FFE idea, with Uefa, Concacaf and the Asian Football Confederation among those expressing opposition; Uefa had threatened to boycott the World Cup if the plan proceeded. The controversy prompted the resignation of a senior adviser to Infantino, Carlos Cordeiro, while some member associations reacted in different ways.
Several Concacaf members, including Mexico, broke ranks with their confederation to offer support for Infantino, and the confederations of Africa, South America and Oceania have backed him, according to the reporting. National associations including England, Wales, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland withdrew support for Infantino earlier, and on Monday the Scottish FA became the latest to withdraw. Football governance charity FairSquare said it had written to Fifa demanding Infantino not be allowed to stand for re-election.
BBC Sport was told that Infantino received the backing of senior executives at a meeting in Morocco earlier this month, a meeting to which Lamour was not invited. Grafstrom also sent a letter to members of Fifa's Council that said: "I would like to provide you with an important update regarding a change within the Fifa Administration. "Following recent discussions, Fifa and our Chief Operating Officer, Kevin Lamour have agreed to part ways. This decision was made after careful consideration and with great respect for Kevin, both personally and professionally… I felt it was important that I personally provide you this update and I would like to express my gratitude to Kevin for these contributions and for his work and commitment on behalf of Fifa on a daily basis. I wish Kevin all the best for the future." Lamour has been approached for comment.
Uefa and Concacaf subsequently withdrew their support for Infantino when he stands for a fourth presidential term at the Fifa Congress in March next year.
