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The crisis surrounding FIFA’s leadership has deepened, with former World Cup winners Emmanuel Petit and Mikael Silvestre joining calls for change at football’s global governing body.
Petit and Silvestre, alongside fellow former France international Olivier Dacourt, criticised FIFA’s current leadership following the collapse of a controversial plan to open World Cup revenues to private investors.
“Change is necessary. Power has blurred the current leadership’s ability to distinguish between its own interests and what is best for football,” the former players said in social media posts.
Although they did not directly name FIFA president Gianni Infantino, their comments were widely linked to concerns surrounding his leadership and the direction of the organisation.
“We share exactly the same concerns as millions of supporters around the world. Like them, we have watched the sport we love drift away from its core values under FIFA’s current leadership,” they said.
The former players also stopped short of directly referring to negotiations reportedly conducted by Infantino to establish a commercial company that would hold World Cup revenues and allow private investors to acquire a stake.
The proposal was eventually abandoned after pressure from football confederations in Europe, North America and Asia.
Petit was a key member of France’s 1998 World Cup-winning squad and also won domestic league titles in France and England with Monaco and Arsenal.
Silvestre, who serves on a FIFA anti-racism panel, won five Premier League titles with Manchester United and was part of the France team that reached the 2006 World Cup final.
Infantino, who has faced mounting criticism over his leadership, remains determined to seek another term as FIFA president.
The next FIFA presidential election is scheduled to take place in Rabat, Morocco, in March 2027.
