European football's governing body (UEFA) has set FIFA a deadline of November 2, in which the world organization must provide key documents and answer a number of questions about its governance and decision-making process. The reason for this was the last meeting of the FIFA Council, at which President Gianni Infantino apologized for his plan to sell rights around the World Cup, but never gave a full explanation of how this idea was developed.
In a letter, UEFA General Secretary Theodoros Theodoridis states that the world headquarters has failed to shed light on “a number of fundamental issues“, and the requested information and documentation have not yet been provided.
The document from UEFA contains eight pages with a total of 42 questions. They cover a wide range of issues – from private investment in the "Fifa Forward Enterprise" (FFE) and the "FIFA Peace Prize" to the controversial conditional ban imposed on US striker Folarin Balogun during the World Cup.
"The withdrawal of the FFE, the admission of mistakes and the announcement of "potential governance reforms" do not answer the question of how the relevant decisions were made or why the FIFA Council was not involved at the appropriate stage. Any refusal to disclose information or documents must be justified individually with clear reasons", Theodoridis' letter also said. UEFA has stressed that future reforms cannot replace responsibility for decisions already taken.
Although UEFA has yet to announce what action it will take if the deadline is not met, the pressure on Infantino is mounting. He initially asked for the questions to be given to him in writing, but English Football Association chairman and FIFA vice-president Debbie Hewitt said sharply after the meeting: “If he doesn't answer these questions then he is not fit to be FIFA president.“