Luis Figo urges Gianni Infantino to resign over shelved World Cup investment plan

Luis Figo has called for FIFA president Gianni Infantino to step down in an opinion piece published in the Daily Mail on 5 August 2026, criticising Infantino’s now-shelved proposal to bring private investment into the World Cup’s commercial structure. Figo’s intervention adds another prominent voice to the mounting criticism of the FIFA president.

The plan under fire proposed creating a new commercial arm to oversee FIFA’s biggest competitions, including both the men’s and women’s World Cups, and would have sought as much as $4.2 billion by offering investors roughly a 20 per cent stake. The proposed division carried an estimated valuation of $20 billion and attracted widespread opposition, with particular concern articulated about the lack of transparency in how the idea was developed.

The 53-year-old former Sporting CP, Barcelona, Real Madrid and Inter Milan star wrote: "What I have seen exposed in the last 10 days is the lowest, most deceitful and cravenly self-interested behavior I have ever witnessed," and asked: "If it was such a good idea, why not tell your members when you had them all in a room before the World Cup final?" He added: "If it was such a robust plan, why not tell your members the risks as well as what you describe as the benefits?" and "If the scheme was a no-brainer, why not be honest about the fact that it was going to give you a $30m-a-year job at the end of it?"

FIFA chief operating officer Kevin Lamour also criticised the initiative last week, describing it as "the project of one person." Other senior figures within the organisation distanced themselves from the proposal, and Carlos Cordeiro, the former president of U.S. Soccer and a one-time senior adviser to Infantino, resigned from his FIFA role last week. UEFA and Concacaf have publicly voiced concerns and questioned whether Infantino should continue leading FIFA.

Figo added direct personal criticism of Infantino's conduct, writing: "Infantino has debased the office of FIFA President that he promised to elevate," and: "He has lied, deceived and tried to feather his own nest at the expense of the game he is supposed to serve." He concluded: "It is too late to save his dignity but it is not too late to save football. He should go. Now," and the piece says Figo believes FIFA would be better served by seeing the back of Infantino sooner rather than later.

Despite the mounting pressure, Infantino's immediate departure appears unlikely. He is expected to seek another term as FIFA president at the election in March and has shown no indication that he intends to resign before then.