Uefa, Concacaf and AFC collaborate on new governance framework to challenge Infantino

Uefa, Concacaf and the Asian Football Confederation are working together to develop a new framework for running world football after a plan to sell 21% of the World Cup was made public a fortnight ago. The coalition says Gianni Infantino has ignored repeated calls for an independent review since that disclosure.

Repeated demands from Uefa, Concacaf and the AFC for an independent review of Fifa’s governance have been rebuffed by Infantino, and the three confederations have responded by taking matters into their own hands. A source with knowledge of the discussions told the Guardian that the confederations are collaborating to draft a policy document outlining how the world governing body could evolve.

Those involved in the talks have been empowered to pose foundational questions about Fifa’s future: what Fifa’s precise role should be, how it should be structured and what governance model should be adopted. The work on a new policy document is intended to set out alternative institutional arrangements rather than merely propose cosmetic changes.

Financial distribution among member associations is a central concern for the confederations, with particular focus on how to deploy funds from Fifa’s estimated $5bn (£3.7bn) reserves. The group is examining mechanisms for allocating those resources across regions and associations as part of the wider governance review.

If Infantino declines to engage with the proposals, the new framework is likely to be adopted by a challenger at next year’s presidential election or could be used as a template for a breakaway organisation. The Concacaf president, Victor Montagliani, is seen as the most likely presidential challenger at this stage, although, as he told the Guardian in June, his current focus is being reelected as president of the North and Central American confederation next year.

Uefa, Concacaf and the AFC released a joint statement on Monday which called for "leadership that serves football, not seeks to command it", and have already begun preliminary discussions about organising new competitions if the standoff with Fifa’s leadership persists. Those conversations include contingency planning should collective action against Fifa be required.

At present next month’s Under-20 Women’s World Cup could take place without European teams, as Uefa is maintaining that its members will boycott the tournament unless Fifa moves quickly to set up an independent review of the World Cup sell-off debacle and provide legally binding assurances that such a move will not be repeated.

Senior figures from European football are gathering in person for the first time since the Fifa Forward Enterprise scandal broke, with a number of meetings expected in Salzburg — where the Uefa Super Cup final will be held on Wednesday — over the next two days. Uefa president Aleksander Ceferin will hold talks with Nasser al-Khelaifi, the chair of European Football Clubs (EFC), during those meetings as the confederations seek to consolidate their position ahead of next year’s presidential contest.