Arsene Wenger is weighing up a run at the FIFA presidency against Gianni Infantino, and the former Arsenal manager has eight days left to make up his mind.
Candidates have until 18 November to come forward for an election that takes place at the FIFA Congress in Rabat, Morocco, on 18 March next year. Wenger, now 77, has not decided yet, but he is being taken seriously in Europe as a possible challenger.
According to L’Équipe, he is “tempted” to stand and has been thinking it over for several weeks. He told the French paper he is waiting, but not for long.
Why is Wenger being talked about as a FIFA candidate?
Arsene Wenger has been FIFA’s chief of global football development since 2019, so he knows the organisation from the inside. His reputation in the game and his standing with FIFA’s member associations are why he is seen as a possible unity candidate, and it is understood he would serve only one term if he ran.
UEFA want someone credible to put up against Infantino. Their problem with the current president goes back to the summer, when his plan to sell a minority stake in a World Cup company, FIFA Forward Enterprise, to private investors came to light.
Three continental confederations, UEFA among them, rejected it. Infantino dropped the idea, but UEFA said it had “lost confidence” in him and has been looking for an opponent ever since.
Where Wenger stands on Infantino
Wenger has already put some distance between himself and the president. On 4 August he said he was “not involved” in the stake sale and first heard about it through media reports.
He said at the time: “The decision to withdraw the project was absolutely necessary and beyond question, because I firmly believe in an independent Fifa that serves our game with commitment, transparency, and integrity.”
That is not quite a campaign speech, but it is a long way from the language of someone who works happily under the current regime.
Is he UEFA’s first choice?
Not yet. Wenger is one of a number of names UEFA could get behind, but he is not seen as the preferred candidate, and others are still being looked at. UEFA’s executive committee and its member associations are expected to meet this week to talk about who gets Europe’s support.
Two men have already said they want to run. Kozo Tashima, honorary president of the Japanese Football Association, announced his bid on Thursday. Ramon Vega, the former Tottenham Hotspur player, has also said he wants to stand, though he may not get the five member associations needed to back a candidate.
Infantino will not be easy to beat. He has rallied support from Africa, Asia, Oceania and South America, and the Caribbean Football Union’s member nations backed him on Friday.
What it means to Arsenal fans
For Gooners, this is the man who transformed the club over more than two decades, and who still wanted to see the Champions League trophy at the Emirates last May. Seeing him take on the most powerful man in world football would be quite something.
There is a nice irony in it too. As Arsenal manager, Wenger was one of the Premier League’s loudest critics of the international calendar and what it did to club football and player workloads. Arsenal currently have 19 players away on international duty this month, so Mikel Arteta would probably welcome a FIFA president who knows how that feels from the dugout.
He has kept an eye on the club from a distance as well, backing Arteta’s side in the title race long before they became champions.
Will Arsene Wenger run for FIFA president?
Our guess is yes, if UEFA give him their backing. He would not be weighing it this long at 77 if the idea did not appeal, and the one-term plan makes it an easier sell to associations who want change without a long reign.
Without Europe’s support, though, the numbers look hard. Infantino already has most of the world’s confederations on his side, and Wenger has never struck us as someone who would stand just to make a point. The next few days, and that UEFA meeting, should settle it.
