Saudi Arabia’s backing of Gianni Infantino has emerged as the FIFA president faces mounting criticism following the collapse of the governing body’s controversial FIFA Forward Enterprise proposal. Saudi Arabia’s football federation welcomed Infantino and FIFA leadership on Thursday as they try to bring unity back into football.
Saudi Arabian Football Federation (SAFF) received recognition of its mistakes, an apology by FIFA and its cancellation of the proposal. It also urged football stakeholders to solve their disagreements by talking.
At this moment, SAFF welcomes the ongoing work of the FIFA President Gianni Infantino and FIFA’s leadership to unite the football family and further develop the sport for the benefit of all, the federation said in a statement.
Explanations of the significance of the backing: Saudi Arabia is a country which has become more influential in foreign football. The country is to host the 2034 FIFA World Cup; meanwhile, its Public Investment Fund (PIF) provided the funding for the FIFA Club World Cup in 2025, and has established commercial links with FIFA on the major international tournaments.
SAFF also noted that the World Cups have recently shown that football is able to be cooperative in the big tournaments in the world.
The last three FIFA World Cups have shown what football can do when the global family is united, FIFA said.
The federation also commended the contributions that Infantino had made to the development of the game over the past 10 years under his nearly 10-year leadership, saying his work “should also be recognised.
FIFA is making the statement at a delicate time for the organization, after the withdrawal of the FIFA Forward Enterprise project, which was opposed by some stakeholders. Saudi Arabia’s choice of a public endorsement of Infantino is a significant sign of support from one of the world’s most economically powerful countries.
