FIFA Ex-Official Says Infantino Ineligible for Fourth Term
Former FIFA governance chief Miguel Maduro argues Gianni Infantino cannot stand again, while a campaign group presses member associations to block his re-election.
Updated on Nov. 3, 2026 in Soccer
Former FIFA Governance Committee head Miguel Maduro said Gianni Infantino cannot stand for a fourth term as FIFA president. FairSquare wrote to FIFA member associations urging them to declare Infantino ineligible for re-election.
Why it matters
The dispute centers on whether Infantino's 2016 election counts toward FIFA's term limit, a question that could determine eligibility for the next presidential contest. The outcome affects governance of world football, which has 211 voting members.
The dispute rests on the wording of Article 33, paragraph two of the FIFA statutes, with the three-term limit at issue. FairSquare reached 52 of FIFA's 211 voting members, and none have responded publicly, while the reasoning behind FIFA's 2022 ruling remains unpublished.
The players
Gianni Infantino
Infantino is the president of FIFA, the global governing body of football, who was first elected in 2016 and is seeking re-election.
Miguel Maduro
Maduro is a Portuguese lawyer who previously headed FIFA's Governance Committee and was removed from his post in 2017.
FairSquare
FairSquare is a campaign organization that has challenged Infantino's eligibility and filed a formal complaint against him.
Norwegian Football Association
The Norwegian football federation is a FIFA member association that backed FairSquare's official complaint over political neutrality rules.
The details
Maduro based his assessment on the wording of Article 33, paragraph two of the FIFA statutes. Infantino argues his first spell from 2016 should not count because it completed an interrupted mandate, while FairSquare contends he has already served the maximum three terms.
Timeline
2016: Infantino elected FIFA president at an Extraordinary Congress following Sepp Blatter's resignation.
2017: Maduro removed from his FIFA post after blocking Vitaly Mutko's re-election to its top committee.
December 2022: FIFA Council unanimously confirmed the 2016-2019 period does not count as a term for Infantino.
October: The head of Asian football endorsed Infantino's re-election bid.
November 3: Maduro said Infantino is ineligible and FairSquare sent its letter to member associations.
Big Picture
The contest turns on Article 33, paragraph two of the FIFA statutes, which caps presidential service at three terms. How that cap applies to Infantino's interrupted first mandate will shape how strictly FIFA's own term-limit rules are enforced.
If the three-term reading prevails, Infantino would not be eligible for the 2027 FIFA presidential election, which would open the race to other candidates. Member associations voting in that contest would face a direct question about the statutes' limits.
The takeaway
Term-limit rules only hold when they are applied consistently, and the unpublished December 2022 reasoning makes that consistency hard to verify from outside FIFA. Readers following the dispute should watch how member associations respond to FairSquare's letter.
What happens next
FairSquare will meet Norwegian football officials on Wednesday to discuss its complaint.
Further reading
Explore more Soccer coverage for context on world football governance.
