Swiss Football Association Withdraws Support for Infantino in FIFA Presidential Election

The statement added: "This decision comes after a comprehensive reassessment of the developments witnessed in the past few months. From the Swiss Football Association's perspective, several events raise fundamental questions about FIFA's leadership, governance, transparency, and decision-making mechanisms".

It continued: "This is particularly concerning the clarity of the rules and the integrity of the competitions in the Balugon case, as well as the institutional integration and responsibilities associated with the FIFA Forward project".

The Swiss Football Association emphasized that credibility, transparency, accountability, and the effective participation of competent bodies, as stipulated by the statutes, are essential conditions for building trust in the management of international football and ensuring FIFA's integrity.

It pointed out that the Central Committee believes, in light of the developments since June last year and the outstanding issues, that these conditions are no longer met.

For his part, Peter Knabel, President of the Swiss Football Association, said: "The Association expects FIFA's leadership to adhere to the highest standards of transparency, accountability, and institutional responsibility".

Knabel added: "The measures announced by FIFA in its letter dated September 21 are undoubtedly an important signal and may contribute to clarifying some aspects of the events, but fundamental questions remain about the context, responsibilities, and decision-making mechanisms".

He continued: "In the absence of sufficient clarifications on these issues, we cannot continue to support Gianni Infantino's candidacy".

The Swiss Football Association stressed that its decision does not mean abandoning constructive cooperation within FIFA and with the international football community.

It emphasized its awareness of its special responsibility as the representative of the country hosting the headquarters of FIFA and the European Football Association "UEFA".

The Swiss Football Association explained that it will continue to advocate for enhanced transparency, reliable institutional structures, and rule-based decision-making mechanisms, contributing to the unification of the international football community.

The decision comes as Infantino faces increasing opposition, following his attempt in July last year to offer a stake in FIFA tournaments, including the World Cup, a plan he had to abandon later.

The Swiss move is the latest blow to Infantino, after football associations in England, Wales, France, Serbia, and several other European countries withdrew their support for his candidacy, while the European Football Association "UEFA" pledged to present a competing candidate before the deadline in November next year.

Infantino (56), who has been FIFA President since 2016, faces calls for resignation amid demands for reforms in the institution responsible for managing global football.

In a letter to member associations in September, Infantino confirmed his openness to talks on reform, but the Swiss Football Association said that key questions about FIFA's responsibilities and decision-making mechanisms remain unanswered.