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More football federations and Fifa officials have withdrawn their support for president Gianni Infantino, with one of his vice-presidents describing the departure of a senior executive as the “final straw” in a growing governance crisis. Fifa confirmed on Monday that chief operating officer Kevin Lamour had left the organisation weeks after he publicly criticised Infantino’s plan to sell a stake in the commercial rights to the World Cup and other major tournaments. The decision prompted Hungary’s Sandor Csanyi, one of eight Fifa vice-presidents and a member of the Fifa Council, to withdraw his backing for Infantino’s bid for a fourth term. “The final straw was the unexpected dismissal of Kevin Lamour,” Csanyi wrote in a letter to Infantino. He said Lamour had performed his duties “to a high professional and ethical standard” and made a significant contribution to Fifa’s transparent operation. Csanyi added that Lamour’s dismissal, which he said was prompted by criticism of an initiative Infantino had ultimately acknowledged was misguided, pointed to “serious shortcomings in professional judgement, ethical standards and leadership”. Lamour had previously accused Fifa of deceiving staff over the proposed commercial deal, describing it as the project of one person. The controversy has added to mounting pressure on Infantino, who is seeking re-election in March for a fourth term that would run until 2031. Uefa president Aleksander Ceferin, Sheikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa, president of the Asian Football Confederation, and Concacaf president Vittorio Montagliani have also criticised Infantino’s conduct. Montenegro has now joined the growing list of federations distancing themselves from the Fifa president. Dejan Savicevic, a Fifa Council member since 2017 and president of the Football Association of Montenegro, said the federation had withdrawn its earlier letter of support for Infantino’s candidacy. In a letter to Fifa secretary general Mattias Grafstrom, Savicevic described recent developments as “extremely worrying”, accusing Fifa of a serious lack of communication and transparency towards member associations and even the Fifa Council. “The proposals put forward exposed concerning vulnerabilities regarding governance, not only at political level but also within the Fifa administration,” he wrote. Montenegro also backed calls from other European federations and Uefa for a “thorough review” of the actions of Fifa’s leadership. Wales was the first national federation to formally withdraw its backing earlier this month, with the Football Association of Wales chief executive Noel Mooney telling the BBC that Infantino should resign after his proposal to “sell off the crown jewels” to private equity investors. Infantino retains significant support elsewhere. The African confederation CAF and South America's Conmebol remain behind him.