Gianni Infantino said sorry to the Fifa Council on Thursday, and one of the people in the room says it was not enough. Football Association chair Debbie Hewitt left the Zurich meeting saying that if he does not answer the questions put to him, he is not fit to be Fifa president.
What he apologised for
The Council met for three and a half hours, its first meeting since Infantino's secret Fifa Forward Enterprise proposal came out. The scheme would have handed part of Fifa's commercial rights to a private investment firm, and Infantino scrapped it within days. Hours after the meeting Fifa released a video in which he said he apologised for the mistakes in communication and consultation. He insisted it was only a proposal and never a done deal, and said he would answer questions in writing in due course. He did not speak to or take questions from the media.
Hewitt, a Fifa vice-president, called it the most robust and frank Council meeting she had experienced. She said the contrition was real but that what Infantino regretted was not taking the plan to the Council in the first place.
The documents nobody has seen
The sharpest complaint was about paperwork. Hewitt said members asked for the Enterprise papers and were told to submit their questions in writing. She said she has repeatedly asked for them and still has not received them. Uefa has been among Infantino's loudest critics, has prepared criminal legal proceedings against him and has lodged a claim in three US courts for all documents related to the plan. Hewitt said nothing has shifted from her position, other than that the president is now apologetic.
The meeting also covered the red card for US striker Folarin Balogun, whose ban was suspended after Donald Trump asked for the decision to be reviewed, and the Fifa Peace Prize awarded to Trump. BBC Sport understands a proposal was put forward to stop disciplinary panels from suspending an automatic one-match red-card ban. Fifa's legal committee will review it, and the social committee will investigate how the Peace Prize came about. Both report back in December.
An election with no challenger yet
Infantino will stand for a third term in March, and no credible rival has emerged. Former Tottenham defender Ramon Vega says he intends to run but looks unlikely to collect the five letters of support from member associations. Senior European figures have told BBC Sport they want Arsene Wenger to stand, though he is Fifa's global head of football development and it is unclear whether he would take on his own boss. The deadline to declare is 18 November. Hewitt said she thinks a rival with a different manifesto would be good for Fifa, which re-elected Infantino unopposed in 2019 and 2023.
Key facts: Fifa Council met in Zurich on Thursday 15 October 2026 for three and a half hours. Candidate deadline for the presidency: 18 November, with five nominating associations required. Fifa's legal and social committees report back to the Council in December.
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