FIFA President Gianni Infantino emphasized the need to close the financial gap between wealthy and poorer member associations during a meeting with the Caribbean Football Union (CFU) on August 23-24 in the Dominican Republic. He said, "This is our task – this is our job. We want to grow football in every one of our 211 countries in the world," highlighting FIFA's commitment to finding investments and opportunities for all members [1, 2, 3, 4, 5].

Infantino acknowledged resistance from some quarters, stating, "Some, unfortunately, don’t need and they don’t want that others grow, but we need to narrow this gap between the big, big countries and all the others." He expressed optimism about engaging in dialogue despite opposition from regional leaders [2, 1].

His visit to the Caribbean under-14 tournament came despite CONCACAF President Victor Montagliani asking him to stay away amid mounting opposition to his leadership [1, 2, 3, 4]. Infantino said, "It’s important to engage, to have a dialogue, to express views and opinions – a lot has been happening in the last few weeks and it’s important that you hear, you listen and you’re able to, also, express what your feelings are" [1].

The FIFA leader has been under intense pressure since his failed proposal to sell a minority stake in a new FIFA commercial entity to private investors collapsed. That proposal would have offered up to US$40 million to each of the 211 FIFA member federations but was dropped amid controversy and opposition [1, 2, 3, 4, 5].

Infantino faces a re-election vote in 2027, but UEFA, AFC, and CONCACAF are reportedly considering a vote of no confidence before then. On August 23, the six Nordic Football Associations—Denmark, Iceland, Faroe Islands, Finland, Norway, and Sweden—jointly announced they have "lost confidence" in Infantino and called for his replacement [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]. Their statement said they have "serious concerns about the governance and high-level decision-making of the organisation" and supported demands for a third-party governance review and binding limits on private ownership in FIFA competitions [5].

Infantino reiterated to CFU members, "We have transformed FIFA, made it to what it is, and I stress again today we are here with one job -- to grow football in every corner of the world" [5].

The immediate next step is the ongoing dialogue with FIFA’s 211 members and the lead-up to the 2027 presidential election, where leadership questions are expected to intensify.