Gianni Infantino is facing mounting pressure after UEFA, Concacaf and the AFC called for his resignation as FIFA president in an open letter demanding “leadership that serves football, not seeks to command it.”

In an escalation of tensions that threatens to trigger a deep split in world football, the three confederations accused Infantino of a breach of trust “through deception” and of placing himself above the collective that entrusted him with authority.

The accusations come after the FIFA president attempted to sell a stake in a company that would have been created to manage the commercial side of the World Cup.

The letter was signed by UEFA president Aleksander Čeferin and his counterparts at the AFC and Concacaf, Sheikh Salman bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa and Victor Montagliani, respectively.

Despite the harsh language, the three confederations are also threatening concrete action. According to Bloomberg, talks are already underway over the possibility of organising competitions that would rival FIFA tournaments. The discussions remain at a preliminary stage, but they represent a clear warning to Infantino and FIFA.

UEFA, Concacaf and the AFC criticised Infantino for failing to acknowledge that the proposal to create FIFA Forward Enterprise “was inherently wrong”.

“There remains no recognition that attempting to sell an interest in the FIFA World Cup was a profound failure of judgement – not just a procedural misstep, but a fundamental breach of trust with the very institutions FIFA exists to serve,” the three presidents wrote.

They also condemned the way the proposal was presented, arguing that it was put forward at short notice, without meaningful consultation and before member associations had been given sufficient time to properly assess its terms.

This “is not the product of an oversight – it is the product of a design intended to limit scrutiny.,” they accused.

The letter also refers to a meeting convened by FIFA in Morocco.

“No FIFA Council members or Member Associations were invited to participate. Only the management committee, composed of FIFA-employed senior staff, was present,” the confederations said.

“This recent meeting, where a select number of members of the FIFA management committee – not the full committee – were summoned abroad, rather than leadership going to Zurich to address the heart of FIFA, its staff, only reinforces these concerns and represents a continuation of the very pattern of conduct that brought us to this moment”.

It is not the conduct of a custodian of the game, but of one who believes the game is answerable to him”.