Lamour exit deepens FIFA crisis after Infantino investment revolt

Kevin Lamour has left FIFA as chief operating officer less than three weeks after publicly accusing president Gianni Infantino of misleading staff over plans to sell stakes in the governing body’s competitions to private investors.FIFA confirmed that Lamour’s working relationship with the organisation ended on August 17, bringing his two-year spell as COO to a close at a time of mounting internal and external pressure on Infantino.FIFA said: “FIFA can confirm that the working relationship between FIFA and Kevin Lamour as FIFA’s Chief Operating Officer has ended on 17 August 2026.“FIFA thanks Kevin for his two years of service and wishes him the best of luck for the future.“No further comment will be made on the matter.”Lamour had become one of the most senior FIFA executives to challenge Infantino publicly over the proposed FIFA Forward Enterprise structure, which would have opened parts of FIFA’s World Cup and competition business to private investment.He said staff had been “deceived” over the proposal and argued that the project was driven personally by Infantino.Lamour said: “It is the project of one person.“Not only must this project not go ahead … but the time has now come for football political leaders to ask themselves the right questions and make the right decisions.”The plan was subsequently abandoned following widespread opposition, but the dispute has triggered a broader governance crisis inside FIFA.Lamour had already acknowledged that speaking publicly could cost him his position.He said: “If that means I lose my job, then so be it. I will understand and respect that decision. At least I’ll sleep well tonight.”His departure follows the resignation of senior Infantino adviser Carlos Cordeiro, who also opposed the proposed investment structure.Lamour’s exit is particularly significant because of his long-standing relationship with Infantino. He previously worked at UEFA and had held senior roles there before joining FIFA, having first entered the European governing body in 2007.The controversy around the abandoned investment proposal has now moved beyond internal management and into the question of Infantino’s continued presidency.Governance group FairSquare has asked FIFA’s Governance, Audit and Compliance Committee to rule Infantino ineligible to stand for another term next year, arguing that he is already serving his third and final term.Infantino was elected in 2016 following FIFA’s corruption crisis, but FIFA subsequently determined that the period between 2016 and 2019 did not count as a full presidential term because he had completed the mandate originally begun by Sepp Blatter.FairSquare is challenging that interpretation, arguing that FIFA statutes state that no president may serve more than three terms and do not provide an exemption for shortened mandates.The governance battle creates further uncertainty around FIFA’s leadership at a time when its commercial strategy, private capital plans and internal decision-making are facing unusually intense scrutiny.Lamour’s departure removes one of the organisation’s most senior operational executives while increasing attention on whether dissent over FIFA’s commercial direction is turning into a wider challenge to Infantino’s authority.