Africa took a unanimous decision to rally behind incumbent FIFA President Gianni Infantino as he seeks another term at the helm of the world football governing body.
The Confederation of African Football and its 54 Members confirmed that they will support Infantino ahead of the FIFA Elections slated for next year in March.
The decision was sealed and stamped on the sidelines of the CAF Strategy Conference held in San Maria, Cape Verde.
Patrice Motsepe, the CAF President, confirmed that the whole of Africa will fully support Infantino for another term.
“We took a resolution, unanimous, that we support him and we will stand by him for the next elections,” Motsepe said in an address to delegates from 52 of 54 national federations that form the CAF.
FUFA President, Moses Hassim Magogo, came out to express publicly that he was happy to continue supporting Infantino.
“For FUFA, it was a no-brainer; we’re among the 5 or so African Federations that voted for Gianni in 2016. He has done much more than he promised,” he said.
Despite pressure from UEFA and other Confederations, Infantino has remained the most likely candidate to retain football’s top seat.
Only Ramon Vega, the former Tottenham and Switzerland defender, has put himself forward to stand.
And with Africa’s bloc vote forming more than a quarter of the 211 possible votes, Infantino clearly remains in pole position.
Last weekend, Infantino was at the FIFA ASEAN Cup final in Jakarta, Indonesia, a move which is largely viewed as a campaign trail and an effort to comb for votes.
Beyond Africa, South America and Oceania are equally in support, with only UEFA and CONCAF expressing their solidarity in opposing his return. Asia seems split on who they will vote for, and that is if there is another candidate that will show up besides Infantino and Vega.
