The Qatar Football Association (QFA) raised concerns that the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) failed to consult its 47 member associations before signing a joint letter with UEFA and CONCACAF that criticized FIFA President Gianni Infantino. The letter questioned Infantino’s leadership and his aborted FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE) proposal to bring private investment into the World Cup ahead of his re-election bid next year [1, 2, 3].

QFA President Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani, who supports Infantino, said the AFC’s response to his complaint only raised further questions. He maintained, "The AFC reply amounts to an admission that no consultation took place, whether with the AFC executive committee, with individual member associations, or otherwise, prior to the statement being issued in their name" [1]. He added, "However extensively the AFC reply addresses the substance of the FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE) proposal, FIFA's own conduct, or the history of AFC's public statements, none of that bears on the narrow and unanswered question of whether AFC's membership was consulted before the statement was issued in their name. It was not." [2]

Qatar was one of six AFC members who publicly supported Infantino early in the FFE controversy, among the AFC's 47 member associations [1, 2].

In response, AFC President Sheikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al-Khalifa denied that he exceeded his authority by signing the letter. On August 18, he said he had "both the authority and the responsibility to act decisively to defend the interests of Asian football," and criticized Qatar for focusing on procedural issues rather than substance [1, 2]. Sheikh Salman stated, "I categorically deny the assertion that I have exceeded my authority by signing the joint letter." [2]

QFA reaffirmed that Sheikh Salman was not authorized to speak for all AFC members without explicit approval, emphasizing that any presidential rights are strictly defined by AFC rules [1, 2]. This disagreement over authority remains unresolved.

The latest correspondence came on August 19 when QFA President Al-Thani issued a third letter emphasizing again the absence of prior consultation with AFC members before the critical statement was issued on behalf of AFC [1, 2, 3].