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Belgian Football Federation Rejects Infantino’s FIFA Re-Election Bid
(MENAFN) The Royal Belgian Football Association (RBFA) announced Monday that it would not support Gianni Infantino’s bid for another term as FIFA president, pointing to concerns over transparency, accountability and governance.
The federation said its decision was driven by two “fundamental pillars” where it believes FIFA has yet to provide adequate transparency.
The first concerns the FIFA Forward Enterprise project, which was eventually shelved following criticism. The Belgian federation said key decisions and evaluations surrounding the initiative lacked sufficient explanation, raising concerns about the way the process was managed and governed.
The RBFA added that it continued to share UEFA’s position in seeking clearer information about FIFA’s decision-making process and its intended next steps.
The second concern involves the red card issued to US forward Folarin Balogun during the World Cup, a matter in which the Belgian federation said it was directly involved. FIFA later suspended the red card after US President Donald Trump called on Infantino to reconsider the case.
The RBFA said it had repeatedly requested a clear explanation for the decisions and clarification on how comparable situations would be handled in the future, but had not received a satisfactory response.
“For the Belgian Football Association, it is essential that such cases are handled transparently and rigorously, in the interests of FIFA, good governance and the credibility of international football, with clear guarantees for the future,” it said.
The federation has requested that the Balogun case be discussed at the next FIFA Council meeting, scheduled for Oct. 15. RBFA President Pascale Van Damme is among the council members.
“My team at the RBFA communicated calmly and constructively with FIFA, during and after the World Cup, to obtain clarification in the Balogun case,” Van Damme said.
“Two months after the events, we note that our questions remain unanswered,” she added.
Van Damme said the federation was seeking the necessary explanations while also looking at potential changes to FIFA’s current procedures to ensure comparable cases are handled “clearly, consistently and efficiently” in the future.
The federation said its decision was driven by two “fundamental pillars” where it believes FIFA has yet to provide adequate transparency.
The first concerns the FIFA Forward Enterprise project, which was eventually shelved following criticism. The Belgian federation said key decisions and evaluations surrounding the initiative lacked sufficient explanation, raising concerns about the way the process was managed and governed.
The RBFA added that it continued to share UEFA’s position in seeking clearer information about FIFA’s decision-making process and its intended next steps.
The second concern involves the red card issued to US forward Folarin Balogun during the World Cup, a matter in which the Belgian federation said it was directly involved. FIFA later suspended the red card after US President Donald Trump called on Infantino to reconsider the case.
The RBFA said it had repeatedly requested a clear explanation for the decisions and clarification on how comparable situations would be handled in the future, but had not received a satisfactory response.
“For the Belgian Football Association, it is essential that such cases are handled transparently and rigorously, in the interests of FIFA, good governance and the credibility of international football, with clear guarantees for the future,” it said.
The federation has requested that the Balogun case be discussed at the next FIFA Council meeting, scheduled for Oct. 15. RBFA President Pascale Van Damme is among the council members.
“My team at the RBFA communicated calmly and constructively with FIFA, during and after the World Cup, to obtain clarification in the Balogun case,” Van Damme said.
“Two months after the events, we note that our questions remain unanswered,” she added.
Van Damme said the federation was seeking the necessary explanations while also looking at potential changes to FIFA’s current procedures to ensure comparable cases are handled “clearly, consistently and efficiently” in the future.
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