The Norwegian Football Federation (NFF) has called for FIFA president Gianni Infantino to resign, deepening the growing dispute over his leadership of world football.
NFF president Lise Klaveness said Infantino no longer commands the institutional trust required to lead FIFA, following the collapse of plans to attract private investment into the governing body’s competitions.
Klaveness said on Friday that Norway would directly push for Infantino’s resignation rather than simply withdraw its support for his presidency.
“He does not have the institutional trust required to govern FIFA stably in the times we are in,” she said.
“There is no going back for Gianni Infantino. International football cooperation is very much in trouble, and we must have a reason to get together now.”
Norway’s position goes further than that of several European football associations, including England, Wales, Croatia and Albania, which have withdrawn their backing for Infantino without explicitly demanding that he step down.
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Klaveness also raised concerns over several decisions taken during Infantino’s tenure, including the awarding of major tournaments, FIFA’s controversial peace prize presented to United States President Donald Trump and the overturning of a suspension involving American forward Folarin Balogun during the recent World Cup.
However, Infantino continues to enjoy support from some major football associations.
Mexico, one of the three hosts of the 2026 World Cup, broke ranks with Concacaf by publicly backing the FIFA president.
The Mexican Football Federation (FMF) said it supported Infantino’s leadership and his efforts to strengthen FIFA’s institutions and develop the sport globally.
Mexico also said it would oppose any attempt to remove Infantino without a vote involving all 211 FIFA member associations.
Argentina, the 2026 World Cup runners-up, also expressed support for Infantino, praising him for acknowledging and apologising for what he described as mistakes.
South American football governing body Conmebol similarly rejected any attempt to remove the FIFA president outside the organisation’s established institutional framework, although it expressed concern over what it described as repeated unilateral actions.
Infantino’s position remains particularly contested in Europe and North America.
UEFA has said it has lost confidence in his presidency and warned that European nations could still consider boycotting the World Cup unless assurances are provided that similar attempts to reshape FIFA’s commercial structure will not be repeated.
Concacaf has also criticised the proposed FIFA Forward Enterprise investment arrangement, describing it as evidence of leadership that had stopped putting football first.
The controversy erupted after Infantino’s proposal to secure private investment in FIFA competitions, including the men’s and women’s World Cups, through the FFE subsidiary.
The proposal reportedly included an offer of $40 million to each member association that backed the plan.
FIFA subsequently acknowledged that mistakes had been made in the way the proposal was handled, saying member associations and the FIFA Council should not have felt excluded from the process.
Despite the apology and withdrawal of the proposal, opposition to Infantino’s leadership remains strong, with Norway now becoming the first national association to openly demand his resignation.
Infantino, who has led FIFA since 2016, remains backed by the Confederation of African Football (CAF), while the dispute continues to divide football’s regional governing bodies.
