Six Nordic football associations—Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, and the Faroe Islands—jointly declared they had lost confidence in FIFA President Gianni Infantino's leadership and expressed serious concerns about FIFA's governance and decision-making at the highest level. They issued a rare joint statement after meeting in Helsinki on Sunday, August 23, 2026 [1, 2, 3, 4].
The Nordic groups stated, “The six Nordic football associations have lost confidence in FIFA's president and are concerned about the organization's governance and decision-making at the highest level,” calling on FIFA to provide "binding guarantees that the organization's governance or competitions will never again be opened up to private ownership” [1]. They voiced strong support for UEFA and its proposals, including calls for Infantino's resignation, and backed demands from UEFA, AFC, and CONCACAF for a fully independent external investigation into FIFA's Forward Enterprise proposal—a plan by Infantino to sell stakes in World Cup events to private equity that was abandoned amid global backlash [1, 2, 3, 4].
The associations also urged FIFA to launch a comprehensive, independent review of its governance framework to assess whether it upholds independence, checks and balances, transparency, and accountability as intended in FIFA's 2016 reform programme [1]. Denmark's football federation pledged to find a “credible alternative” to Infantino for the presidential election scheduled for March 2027, when Infantino seeks a fourth term lasting until 2031 [1, 2, 3, 4].
Meanwhile, Infantino was meeting Caribbean Football Union officials in the Dominican Republic over the weekend. CONCACAF President Victor Montagliani said he asked Infantino to skip a youth football tournament there, fearing his presence would overshadow the event [3, 4].
Other confederations including UEFA, AFC, and CONCACAF have also pressured Infantino to resign and discussed a possible vote of no confidence. England's Football Association and several national bodies have withdrawn support ahead of the upcoming FIFA presidential election [1, 2, 3, 4]. FIFA issued an apology for errors related to the Forward Enterprise plan and withdrew the proposal after widespread opposition [4].
Denmark's football association made its alternative candidate intentions public on August 21, 2026, just days before the Nordic group’s Helsinki meeting [1, 2, 3]. The joint Nordic statement on August 23 reinforced mounting challenges to Infantino’s presidency just months before the election set for March 2027.
