Opinions, analysis and commentary
FIFA’s own statutes cap any president at three terms, yet the federation says Infantino can run for a fourth anyway, because a technicality wiped his first stint off the books. He confirmed on September 6 that he will stand again in 2027, months after a shelved plan to sell a stake in World Cup commercial rights triggered backlash from three confederations and a UEFA legal threat. The eligibility hinges entirely on a 2022 ruling that his partial 2016-2019 term does not count. Critics call that reasoning a workaround; FIFA calls it settled.
FIFA issued a formal statement on September 6 confirming what its president had signalled four months earlier: he would stand for re-election in 2027. Infantino first made the announcement on April 30 at the 76th Congress in Vancouver, telling member associations he was honoured to put his name forward again.
The confirmation landed against a turbulent backdrop. On July 28, Infantino had unveiled a plan to sell a 20 percent stake in a new subsidiary controlling World Cup rights to private investors led by Thrive Capital, founded by Joshua Kushner, for 4.2 billion dollars. Three confederations called for a review, and he abandoned the plan on August 1, though UEFA kept pursuing legal remedies.
Article 33(2), adopted February 26, 2016, the same day Infantino won his first election, is unambiguous: no president may hold office for more than three terms of four years each, capping any tenure at 12 years.
The complication is that his first election filled the remaining time of his predecessor’s suspended presidency rather than a standard mandate. In December 2022, the Council endorsed a view that the 2016-2019 period did not count as a term, restarting his count at zero. No legal reasoning was published.
| Term | Years Served | Notes | Rule Compliance |
| Term 1 (partial) | Feb 2016 – Jun 2019 | About 3 years 4 months, completing the previous presidency | Ruled not to count in Dec 2022, disputed by campaigners and a former governance chair |
| Term 2 | Jun 2019 – Mar 2023 | 4 years, elected unopposed | Compliant under the reinterpretation |
| Term 3 | Mar 2023 – Mar 2027 | 4 years, elected unopposed | Compliant under the reinterpretation |
| Term 4 (proposed) | Mar 2027 – 2031 | 4 years, if elected in Morocco | Disputed; cap depends entirely on discounting the first term |
The election is scheduled for March 18, 2027, at the 77th Congress in Rabat, Morocco. Candidates need nominations backed by at least five member associations by November 18, 2026, and a simple majority of the 211 associations to win.
Infantino enters with structural advantages. Three confederations, representing 111 associations between them, have declared support, comfortably clearing the majority threshold alone. A CONCACAF federation president has been named as a potential challenger but had not confirmed a candidacy by mid-September. A push for a no-confidence motion was dropped once it became clear that altering the statutes would need three-quarters of associations, a bar considered unreachable.
UEFA’s challenge is the most serious institutionally. On August 27, it filed for discovery from FIFA’s American entities in a Florida federal court, saying it was weighing a Swiss criminal complaint over alleged mismanagement tied to the abandoned rights sale. The filing alleged the valuation was fraudulently favourable to Infantino, developed in secret for over a year and bypassing normal governance. FIFA denied wrongdoing and accused critics of a smear campaign.
A rights organisation separately wrote to the committee, arguing that discounting the first term circumvents the rule meant to check presidential power, with input from a former chair of FIFA’s own review body.
The governance committee, the body whose 2022 ruling opened the door to a fourth term, must respond to the eligibility challenge before the deadline, though no date has been set. If it upholds his eligibility, as expected, attention shifts to whether the Swiss legal threat gains traction before March.
The nomination window will show whether a rival can gather the five endorsements needed, given Infantino has already been elected unopposed twice. With a potential 15-year presidency on the line, FIFA President Infantino’s fourth-term election has become the clearest test yet of whether football’s governance reforms carry real teeth.
Should a technicality about an unfinished first term be enough to unlock a fourth run at the presidency, or does that undercut the entire point of a term limit? Share your view below.
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Is Infantino allowed to run for a fourth term as FIFA president?
Yes, under FIFA’s own position, because a 2022 Council ruling decided his partial first term does not count toward the cap. Rights group FairSquare and a former governance chair dispute that reasoning.
When is the next FIFA presidential election?
The vote takes place on March 18, 2027, at the 77th Congress in Rabat, Morocco. Candidates must secure nominations from at least five member associations by November 18, 2026.
Why is UEFA taking legal action against Infantino?
UEFA is weighing a Swiss criminal complaint over an abandoned plan to sell a stake in World Cup commercial rights for 4.2 billion dollars. It alleges the valuation favoured Infantino and bypassed normal approval.
Who could challenge Infantino in the 2027 election?
Any candidate backed by five member associations can stand, and CONCACAF president Victor Montagliani has been floated as a possible rival. He had not confirmed a candidacy as of mid-September 2026.
What is FIFA’s term limit rule for the presidency?
Article 33(2) caps the presidency at three four-year terms, consecutive or not, for a maximum of 12 years in office. The rule was adopted in February 2016 as part of football’s post-corruption governance reforms.
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