Premier League joins La Liga, Bundesliga and Serie A in demand for 'fundamental' Fifa reform
On 25 September 2026 the Premier League joined Spain's La Liga, Germany's Bundesliga and Italy's Serie A in a joint statement calling for "fundamental" reform of how Fifa is run, accusing the Fifa president Gianni Infantino of having "actively promoted exploitative ideas".
The 2026 World Cup was hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico, and the four top European leagues said they were speaking out "because we understand how Fifa's relentless expansionism affects everyone" and that world football's governing body must become "transparent, objective, proportionate and inclusive". Their intervention follows Infantino's proposal of an external review of Fifa amid the crisis over his failed plan to sell a stake in the World Cup to private investors, which the leagues say sparked a global outcry.
Referencing "one of the biggest abuses of power in Fifa's history", the leagues said that while stakeholders forced the withdrawal of the Fifa Forward Enterprise scheme (FFE), "the conditions that led to FFE remain". The joint statement added concerns that any post-FFE fixes should not be "surface-level, process changes" and insisted that "fundamental governance reform is essential to restore clear constitutional boundaries within Fifa, including confidence that individual disciplinary matters remain demonstrably insulated from political interference." That passage is known in the statement to reference the cancelled suspension of United States forward Folarin Balogun at the World Cup after US President Donald Trump called Infantino asking for the striker's ban to be reviewed.
The four leagues argued that "Fifa's governance problem goes far beyond the role of one individual" and questioned "whether Fifa's president should simultaneously wield such regulatory, commercial and political power without effective checks and balances, including the agreement of affected stakeholders... governance that concentrates unchecked regulatory, commercial and political power in a single office, while relegating affected stakeholders to mere advisory status, is not fit for purpose." Fifa has been approached for comment.
The leagues set out specific reforms they want Fifa to adopt: to establish a permanent body representing key stakeholders, including leagues, clubs, and players from across men's and women's football which has "a meaningful role in [its] decision-making process"; to ensure "evidence-based decision-making", with any major proposal subject to an independent assessment evaluating the impact on all stakeholders; and to create a separation between Fifa's regulatory role and its commercial function via "robust institutional safeguards to preserve trust, legitimacy and accountability" alongside ethics, financial oversight and electoral bodies "that are genuinely independent of the Fifa administration and presidency".
Two years ago Europe's top leagues, together with players' union Fifpro, filed a legal complaint against Fifa with the European Commission alleging an "abuse of dominance" over the expansion of the international fixture calendar and an alleged lack of consultation; Fifa denied the claims and accused some leagues of "hypocrisy" and acting "without consideration to everyone else in the world". The leagues said their legal action "is a consequence of a flawed governance framework in which Fifa can use its regulatory authority to advance its own commercial objectives without accounting for the impact on the economic and social sustainability of national competitions that affect all stakeholders. This must change now for the sake of football".
Despite three confederations calling for him to step down, Infantino has said he will stand for re-election, and in their statement the leagues demanded that any candidates back the proposed governance changes: "Now is the moment to decide not only who will lead Fifa, but also how Fifa should be led. Leagues have a crucial role to play in this process, and we want to ensure that the voice of every league is heard." The letter is signed by Richard Masters, chief executive of the Premier League, Marc Lenz, CEO of the Bundesliga, Javier Tebas, president of La Liga, and Luigi De Siervo, CEO of Serie A.
Infantino has indicated he will stand for re-election in March, with his opponents having until 18 November to find an alternative candidate; the leagues say any prospective leader must support the governance reforms they have set out.
