The 54 African federations back Infantino's re-election at FIFA
Africa's 54 federations back Gianni Infantino's re-election at FIFA, and that voting bloc carries weight for how Latin American football is financed and scheduled.
The 54 member associations of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) backed the re-election of Gianni Infantino as FIFA president on October 8, 2026, in Cabo Verde. The bloc represents more than a quarter of the body's 211 votes and arrives five months before the election expected in March of next year.
The announcement was made by CAF president Patrice Motsepe at a symposium on the island of Sal, according to Forbes México. The Independent reported that the vote is expected in March and that Infantino was first elected in 2016. Infantino arrived at that appointment after withdrawing a plan to sell a stake in FIFA tournaments, a proposal that faced objections from European and North American federations and cost him support, according to the same outlet. Former Swiss defender Ramon Vega announced that he will compete for the presidency, while UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin chose to seek another term leading European football. For Mexico, which co-hosted the 2026 World Cup, continuity at the top of FIFA orders the calendar of development programs and commercial agreements that sustain clubs and event operators.
Before the delegates, Infantino recalled that the FIFA Forward program has invested one billion dollars in Africa over a decade, spread across 124 projects, according to FIFA's official website. He added that the number of African associations without the conditions to host home matches fell from 26 of 54 two years ago to 14, and that nine of the continent's ten national teams that played the 2026 World Cup reached the knockout phase. CAF holds 54 of the congress's 211 votes, the largest regional bloc at FIFA. Motsepe maintained that the associations' decision was unanimous and unconditional.
The March vote remains the next checkpoint, along with the final list of candidates. For anyone operating in the sports business in Latin America, the figure to watch is whether the pace of financing for development and infrastructure holds under the new mandate and how it is distributed among confederations.
This article was drafted with artificial intelligence assistance from verified sources and reviewed by a human editor before publication.
Sources
- Dirigentes del fútbol africano cierran filas en torno a Infantino para su reelección en la FIFA
- Gianni Infantino secures backing of African football leaders for Fifa re-election after investment promise
- Gianni Infantino tells CAF Strategy Conference: We must create opportunities for African talent to shine