Former Barcelona and Inter Milan striker Samuel Eto’o, now the president of the Cameroonian Football Federation, has defended Gianni Infantino’s plot to sell stakes in FIFA’s events and commercial operations.
In an interview with CNN, Eto’o said he hopes the FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE) proposal would be put back on the table in the event Infantino secures re-election for a fourth term in FIFA’s presidential ballot early next year.
Also on Monday, several current and former international footballers released or promoted statements which said “change is necessary” and the sport has “drifted away from its core values under FIFA’s current leadership.” Those to share the post include French World Cup winner Emmanuel Petit, former France and Manchester United defender Mikael Silvestre and Chelsea defender and England international Lucy Bronze.
For now, Infantino is the only confirmed candidate and his re-election appeared certain before his plan to sell 21 per cent of a proposed spin-off commercial arm to investors including Joshua Kushner’s Thrive Eternal provoked a mighty global backlash. This followed a considerable response to FIFA’s decision to suspend a one-game ban for U.S forward Folarin Balogun during the World Cup, after U.S. president Donald Trump had called Infantino to request a review of the decision, which Infantino claims was made independently. The leadership of UEFA, Concacaf and the Asian football confederation have all admonished Infantino publicly, with several countries withdrawing support for his candidature, while current Concacaf president Victor Montagliani is considering challenging for Infantino’s job.
However, the African and South American confederations, as well as Oceania, have been much more forgiving of Infantino, while there appears to be little uniform even between federations of the same confederation, with Mexico, for example, currently still aligned with Infantino, while several Asian countries have released statements defending the FIFA president. At the same time, New Zealand has withdrawn support for Infantino, despite its confederation of Oceania so far appearing to stand by him.
Eto’o told CNN Sports: “I don’t think that President Gianni Infantino has done anything wrong. I think the timing of all of that is because there’s an election coming out, when Gianni Infantino is standing. That’s all there is.”
“I don’t think that President Gianni Infantino has done anything wrong.”
In an exclusive interview with @AmandaDCNN, President of the Cameroonian Football Federation and famed former player @SamuelEtoo shares his support for FIFA President Gianni Infantino. pic.twitter.com/xwzRt76RvR
— CNN International PR (@cnnipr) August 24, 2026
Eto’o continued: “He made a proposal, the 211 members were supposed to sit down, debate the issue and let the majority win. But I am convinced that the voices that were raised, those were not the voices of the majority.”
He added: “There was a need for debate. We should have talked about whether it is a good thing or not.”
Eto’o praised Infantino for the way in which his FIFA presidency has sought to distribute wealth more evenly across the world, meaning theoretically that developing football countries can invest in the sport and become more competitive. Infantino has also expanded both the men’s and the women’s World Cups, with the men’s tournament growing to 48 teams and he is considering a further expansion to 64, while the women’s edition has risen to 32 teams and will grow to 48 by 2031.
“He’s given opportunities to nations that didn’t have those opportunities to take part in the most beautiful tournament, the World Cup,” Eto’o said. “He enabled smaller nations to get seats at these competitions. He has helped our continent. He’s helped our federations to develop much more quickly. We should support him for everything he’s done up to now.”
Eto’o has backed Infantino and his failed FFE proposal. (Khaled Desouki / AFP via Getty Images)
Eto’o echoed Infantino’s view in suggesting the plan was taken out of context by European critics and the media, arguing it could have been “incredible” for Africans. Infantino hoped that the 211 members would be tempted by proposed payments of $40million each over the next four years.
“It would have reset the balance of power in football to ensure that our talent doesn’t disappear and end up playing for other nations,” Eto’o said.
He added: “I want to see all of my colleagues, all of the presidents, re-reading the project. After President Infantino is re-elected, we will have the strength to ask for this project to be put back on the table for discussion. If there is a democratic vote, this project will be adopted because it’s good for the majority.”
That view did not appear to be shared by Mikael Silvestre, the ex-Manchester United and Arsenal defender who hosted FIFA’s in-house podcast during the 2026 World Cup in North America. Silvestre is also one of 16 former players of diverse backgrounds and nationalities who is on the FIFA Players’ Voice Panel which monitors and advises FIFA on initiatives to challenge racism.
A post promoted by Silvestre on his social media accounts said: “We share the exact same concerns as millions of fans around the world. Like them, we have watched the game drift away from its core values under FIFA’s current leadership. For too long, we’ve seen major decisions taken without players being consulted or considered, or without any regard for the fans who sustain the sport.
“Change is necessary. Power has blurred the current leadership’s ability to distinguish between its own interests and what is best for football. Recent events have made silence impossible. Enough is enough.”
The post has also been shared by Petit and Bronze.
