Confederation of African Football (CAF) president Patrice Motsepe has reaffirmed Africa’s support for FIFA president Gianni Infantino as he prepares to seek re-election.
Speaking towards the end of an extensive address at a CAF strategy meeting in Cape Verde, Motsepe announced: “We took a resolution, unanimous that we support him and we will stand by him for the next elections.” He also called on representatives of the 54 national football federations “to stand up and give Gianni a round of applause.”
After a brief pause, during which delegates gradually stood up, Infantino, who had addressed the meeting earlier, received an extended standing ovation.
Turning to football development, Motsepe said, “One of the nations from Africa will win the World Cup. But we’ve got to spend more investment in our academies, in our youth.”
He stressed the importance of CAF’s collaboration with Infantino, adding, “We can’t just keep talking very nicely, having these beautiful plans. We’ve got to invest.”
Infantino has faced criticism from several FIFA member associations, particularly in Europe, Asia and North America, following his controversial, abandoned proposal to establish a commercial subsidiary to manage major FIFA competitions, including the World Cup and Club World Cup.
The next FIFA presidential election is scheduled for March 18, 2027, in Rabat, Morocco.
Defending Infantino and African football’s governance, Motsepe challenged critics to present any allegations through the appropriate channels.
“If anybody has any allegation or any accusation against Gianni Infantino or me or any other president, go to the FIFA ethics committee.”
He also addressed concerns about the governance of African football, insisting that CAF remained committed to transparency, accountability and ethical conduct.
“There are these suggestions that we don’t respect government, that we are not as committed to governance, to transparency, to ethics. For us, governance and ethics and transparency and due process is a matter of life and death. Because our people are looking at us and they’re saying to us in football, how do you conduct, how do you behave?”