Confederation of African Football president Patrice Motsepe threw his, and CAF’s, support behind FIFA president Gianni Infantino on Tuesday, despite a tumultuous FIFA World Cup that has sparked calls for his resignation.
Motsepe dismissed the wide criticism of the head of world football’s governing body, basing his support for the Swiss administrator on Infantino’s loyalty and deep commitment to Africa.
Infantino has come under sustained pressure following a tournament overshadowed by controversies that included soaring ticket prices, widely criticised hydration breaks that critics said were extended to satisfy broadcasters, the barring of Somali referee Omar Artan from entering the United States, complaints over the treatment of Iran‘s national team, and FIFA’s unprecedented decision to suspend the automatic one-match ban handed to USA forward Folarin Balogun after his red card.
Those incidents prompted La Liga president Javier Tebas to call on Infantino to resign, accusing him of “destroying the football industry,” while UEFA president Aleksander Čeferin publicly broke with FIFA over several of the decisions and even skipped the World Cup final in protest.
Motsepe brushed those incidents aside, insisting that Infantino oversaw the “best World Cup ever” and saying he stood behind the FIFA president, who is running for re-election.
“We took a decision, and I personally support Gianni Infantino,” Motsepe told reporters at a press conference on Tuesday in South Africa.
“He’s not just a good friend. He’s a loyal friend. He’s loyal to Africa.
“I come from a background where when people have been loyal to you, you never stab them in the back. You never do that.”
Motsepe acknowledged the criticism surrounding Infantino but suggested the FIFA president was only human.
The Mamelodi Sundowns owner said: “I always look at the heart of a person. We are all human. We all have weaknesses and frailties, and we all make mistakes. I think I make more mistakes than anybody else.
“But what I like is his deep love for football, his deep commitment to football around the world, and his support for Africa.
“Those are some of the issues we have discussed, including some of the issues that have been raised. I’m satisfied that he has always shown the deepest commitment.”
The comments came just days after Tebas accused Infantino of damaging football through governance decisions, and expanding FIFA’s influence at the expense of domestic competitions.
Tebas also cited the Balogun disciplinary controversy as evidence of political interference, while UEFA described the decision to suspend the player’s automatic ban as “unprecedented, incomprehensible and unjustifiable.”
Motsepe also defended FIFA’s judicial process when asked about the Balogun case, distancing football presidents from disciplinary rulings.
“There are rules in FIFA, and we all have to respect those rules,” he said.
“I was laughing when he (Infantino) said that sometimes the FIFA judicial bodies make decisions that he doesn’t like. I thought he got that from me.
“The CAF judicial bodies sometimes take decisions that I don’t like at all, but I’ve got to keep quiet and support them because their independence is critically important.
“They have to know that they must take decisions that have nothing to do with whether the president of football supports them or not.
“The people in FIFA who took the decisions you refer to have been exposed to many situations. I have seen their CVs. There are some people there with enormous integrity.”
His remarks echoed Infantino’s own defense earlier this month that FIFA’s disciplinary bodies operate independently and were not influenced by outside political pressure despite widespread scepticism following Balogun’s reinstatement.
Motsepe also addressed the case of Somali referee Artan, whose World Cup dream ended when U.S. authorities denied him entry into the country before the tournament.
Artan, who would have become the first Somali official to referee at a World Cup, later received a symbolic boost when UEFA appointed him to officiate the UEFA Super Cup after discussions with CAF.
“I was very emotional when I heard what the Somali referee, Omar Artan, said to me,” Motsepe said.
“I was also emotional when he was excited because we told him, ‘You are now going to referee the biggest club competition in Europe.’
“I really want to thank Aleksander Čeferin and UEFA for the discussions and for giving him this opportunity.”
While acknowledging the disappointment, Motsepe stopped short of criticizing the United States.
He said: “I’m clear in my mind about this because the issue comes down to the circumstances under which a country allows somebody to enter or not. We’ve had lots of those challenges.
“We face similar challenges in other countries across the continent in football. It’s a sovereign issue. Every country has its own laws and requirements. My job and my duty are to make sure we support Omar. He’s our best.
“We gave him an award as the best referee on the continent. We are proud of him. We will continue supporting him, and we will continue supporting all our referees.”
The CAF president also expressed his pride at the performance of the African teams at the World Cup, after nine of the 10 African representatives advanced to the knockout rounds.
“Significant progress and successes were achieved by the African National Teams at the FIFA World Cup 2026 and I am very proud of their performances,” he said.
“The nine African national teams that qualified from the Group Stage to the Round of 32 made history at the FIFA World Cup 2026, as this is 90% of the African National Teams that participated, and is the highest percentage to qualify to date.
“The previous percentages of the African National Teams to qualify to the Knockout Stage were 40% in 2022, none in 2018 and 40% in 2014.”
Motsepe said an African football roundtable would be organised to assess the performances and find ways to improve: “We have also identified specific areas where there is room for improvement and I am confident that the coaches, technical teams and players will implement the necessary improvements.
“CAF is making enormous progress in developing and growing men and women football in Africa and making it amongst the best in the world. We remain confident that an African nation will be Champions of the FIFA World Cup.”
