New Zealand breaks with OFC and withdraws support for Gianni Infantino
On 14 August 2026 New Zealand Football broke ranks with the Oceania Football Confederation and confirmed it will not support Fifa president Gianni Infantino's re-election bid ahead of the Fifa Congress in March.
The decision follows controversy over Infantino's aborted plans to sell 20% of the World Cup's commercial rights to private investors and comes after three regional confederations — Europe's Uefa, the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and Concacaf — withdrew their support. The Confederation of African Football (Caf) and South American governing body Conmebol have backed the 56-year-old to win a fourth presidential term at the Fifa Congress in March. New Zealand has joined several individual associations that had already confirmed they would not support Infantino, including England, Wales, Norway, the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.
"New Zealand Football is also seeking an independent review of the steps undertaken to develop the Fifa Forward Enterprise Scheme (FFE)," a statement read. "After careful consideration, NZF has formed the view that decisions and actions within FIFA have contributed to a breakdown in trust and increased division within international football, and that an independent review is required to restore confidence and trust. "NZF believes this point in time represents an opportunity for all Fifa member associations to advocate for stronger governance, accountability and transparency which are fundamental in maintaining confidence of the administration of the global game."
NZF chief executive Andrew Pragnell said: "We've called for an independent review specifically because what we don't want to see is a sort of in-house quick washover of this. "An independent review is something else that has been called for by other confederations that will help restore some of the trust."
New Zealand was the only one of the OFC's 11 members to qualify for the 2026 Fifa World Cup. The Oceania Football Confederation said it welcomed Fifa's decision to withdraw the proposal, but stopped short of declaring or withdrawing support for Infantino.
"The OFC Executive Committee welcomes Fifa's decision to withdraw the FFE proposal and its commitment to review the issues surrounding the project," the statement said. "The OFC recognises the progress achieved over the last decade in advancing football development in Oceania under Fifa's leadership and encourages Fifa to use the review as an opportunity to identify and implement any changes that may be necessary."
Infantino would require 106 votes to win a fourth presidential term as Fifa president. The vote is scheduled to take place at the Fifa Congress in March.
