Football Australia chair Anter Isaac downplays Fifa disputes ahead of AFC congress in Tokyo
Anter Isaac, chair of Football Australia, played down recent disputes at Fifa ahead of the Asian Football Confederation congress in Tokyo this week, comments published on 20 October 2026. Isaac described current tensions within world football’s governing body as “growing pains” while urging a measured view of the situation.
Support for Fifa president Gianni Infantino has rebounded globally after earlier criticism from officials in Europe and North America, with backing now reported from South America, Africa and expanding parts of Asia; that bloc has been framed in coverage as potentially sufficient for success in March’s Fifa presidential election. Delegates attending the AFC congress in Tokyo are expected to discuss Fifa leadership and governance informally, even though those topics are not on the formal agenda, alongside consideration of the likelihood of January’s Asian Cup in Saudi Arabia proceeding.
Isaac made his remarks in an episode of the YouTube show Beyond the Game with Dillon and Rafael earlier this month, an appearance the article noted has been viewed fewer than 200 times. “We can look at it and be unsophisticated and say, what a mess,” he said. “Or we can take a more responsible, mature view and say, you know what, these are growing pains.”
He argued that Fifa’s revenues have “exploded in recent World Cup cycles” and that “systems and processes” at the organisation may not have kept pace. Isaac added that the intentions and motivations of people in football are “always in the best interests” of the sport and asked, “So where has it become misaligned? Maybe it is in approach, maybe in communications and so forth.”
Football Australia’s statement in August called for “clear and credible action” but stopped short of demanding Infantino’s resignation, mirroring language used in a letter co-signed by AFC president Sheikh Salman bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa that sought from Fifa “leadership that serves football, not seeks to command it”. The article reported that Salman has since appeared to soften his stance and that countries including Qatar and the UAE are among Asian nations indicating support for Infantino.
Uefa has sent a letter to Fifa seeking explanations over the proposed sale of 20% of Fifa’s commercial rights under the now-abandoned Fifa Forward Enterprise proposal, the Folarin Balogun affair and Fifa’s relations with Donald Trump, according to the article. The Fifa council met in Zurich last week—the first meeting since FFE emerged—and while Infantino listened to questions there he declined to provide comprehensive answers and asked that questions be submitted in writing ahead of the next council meeting.
Isaac said it was “premature” to discuss whether he would support Infantino at next year’s election and acknowledged he has his “own views” while avoiding open criticism. He also welcomed a focus on procedural remedies, saying: “I’ve been encouraged that, right across the board, everyone is now focusing on that [process] with a view to, OK, let’s try and diagnose, what maybe could have been done differently or better, so that in future – and we codify it – so that in future we avoid it and what’s happened in this particular situation.”
The Fifa council’s next meeting is scheduled to take place in Doha on 16 December, and the presidential election referenced in coverage is due in March; Isaac declined at this stage to state a position on support ahead of those dates.