Concacaf Urges Gianni Infantino to Skip Youth Tournament
Gianni Infantino has been urged to stay away from a youth tournament in the Dominican Republic this weekend, as the political storm around his leadership of Fifa spills onto the touchline.
Concacaf president Victor Montagliani has written to the Fifa chief, asking him not to attend the CFU Under-14 Series and warning that his presence would drag a development competition for children into the heart of a governance crisis.
Concacaf plea amid “governance crisis”
In a letter seen by the BBC, Montagliani directly referenced the “governance crisis surrounding Fifa” before calling on Infantino to rethink his trip.
He told the Fifa president that attending the Caribbean Football Union youth event would “unfortunately undermine the technical nature” of the tournament, arguing that the spotlight would shift from coaching and development to controversy and politics.
“The media will focus on this situation, which will unfortunately significantly take away from the technical nature of the CFU youth competition,” Montagliani wrote.
“As such, I respectfully ask you in the name of football to reconsider your attendance as it will unfortunately undermine the technical nature of this important youth development activity.”
Montagliani, a Canadian who also serves as a Fifa vice-president, has become one of the most prominent voices inside the organisation challenging Infantino’s recent direction.
Invitation predates FFE backlash
Infantino had been invited to the Dominican Republic as a guest of the host nation, with the invitation believed to have gone out before his explosive Fifa Forward Enterprise (FFE) proposal emerged.
That plan, which sought to sell off stakes in the World Cup and other competitions to private investors, has since been scrapped. The fallout has not. The proposal has left Infantino’s position under serious pressure and fractured alliances across the global game.
Several football associations have withdrawn their backing for the Swiss-Italian administrator, accusing him in an open letter from Uefa, Concacaf and the Asian Football Confederation of breaking trust “through deception”.
The dismissal of senior Fifa executive Kevin Lamour, after he criticised Infantino’s approach, has only deepened the anger in some quarters and sharpened the sense of internal crisis.
Warm welcome in the Dominican Republic
On the ground in the Caribbean, the mood has been very different. Infantino was warmly received on arrival in the Dominican Republic, where some officials see his visit as a rare chance to shine on the global stage.
“We deeply appreciate your visit to the Dominican Republic, without doubt that your presence in our country puts us on the international football radar and opens us great prospects for growth and development of Dominican football,” said the country’s minister of sports and recreation, Kelvin Cruz, in a statement.
The CFU Under-14 Series is one of a series of development projects bankrolled by world football’s governing body through its Fifa Forward programme. For local organisers, the presence of the Fifa president is a symbol of that investment. For Montagliani, it is a lightning rod.
The clash of perspectives underlines how Infantino has become both benefactor and burden: the man whose funding underpins youth tournaments, and the man whose politics now threaten to overshadow them.
Power base under strain – but not broken
The backlash to the FFE plan has stripped away support in key regions, but it has not left Infantino isolated.
While some federations in Europe, North and Central America, and Asia have distanced themselves, he still enjoys the backing of heavyweight blocs. South American governing body Conmebol remains in his corner, as does Caf, which represents Africa.
Inside Concacaf itself, the picture is mixed. A number of nations in the confederation have rallied behind Infantino and signalled support for him to continue into a fourth term as Fifa president, even as their own confederation’s leader publicly challenges his presence at a youth event.
That tension now plays out on a small stage: an under-14 tournament in the Caribbean, funded by Fifa, cherished by local officials, and suddenly caught in the crossfire of a global power struggle.
Whether Infantino heeds Montagliani’s plea or walks out at the CFU youth competition anyway will say plenty about how he intends to navigate the next phase of his embattled presidency.
