Infantino rejects CAF influence claims

FIFA president Gianni Infantino was in Ghana on Monday and rubbished claims that he is galvanizing support against Issa Hayatou.

The world football governing body head was in the west African nation as part of African tour which has also seen him make stops in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Uganda. However, the undercurrents of his visits have followed him wherever he has been.

In Zimbabwe, the Swiss lawyer's presence at the birthday bash of Philip Chiyangwa raised eyebrows on the continetal football politics front. The colourful businessman, who also used the party to celebrate his ascension to the Council of Southern African Football Associations (COSAFA) throne, controversially included a gathering of several other football heads seen not to be loyal to Issa Hayatou.

Hayatou, who stands in a Caf presidency election for the eighth time in March, is being contested by the Madagascar FA president, Ahmad Ahmad. Chiyangwa, it turns out, is the campaign manager of this endeavour.

And that's why Infantino's African tour is being interpreted in some quarters as a tacit endorsement of the anti-Hayatou group. “I am going to every association that invites me and to those that didn’t invite me because I am the president of 211 in the world including 54 in Africa,” Infantino said, while in Ghana.

“It is not up to the FIFA president to decide anything when it comes to happen in the CAF congress and presidency. There are delegates entitled to vote and make up their minds and to vote freely according to what they want. The federations and their presidents are big enough to take their own decisions.”

Caf have already suggested that the Fifa president is part of an elaborate scheme to destabilise the incumbent administration, especially as Infantino is not a known ally of Hayatou, who has been in power since 1988.