Confederation of African Football (CAF) President Patrice Motsepe has said FIFA President Gianni Infantino can only be removed from office through an election.
CAF is among the football confederations supporting Infantino’s bid to remain FIFA president.
Infantino, 56, has recently faced criticism from UEFA, the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and CONCACAF, which accused him of “deception” following an unsuccessful attempt to sell stakes in the World Cup to investors.
The three confederations have called for his resignation and argued that he should not seek re-election in March next year.
However, Motsepe, who also serves as a FIFA vice president, said any attempt to remove Infantino must follow established FIFA procedures.
“If anybody has got any problem against anybody, whether it’s Gianni, whether it is anybody else, follow the process, follow the FIFA process, simple as that,” Motsepe told Sky News.
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He added, “If you want to take him out, go for elections; let the 211 member associations decide.”
Motsepe urged stakeholders to respect the electoral process, noting that FIFA elections are scheduled for next year.
“You’ve got to be very careful. There are elections taking place next year. Shouldn’t we allow that process to continue?” he asked.
