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August 20 – Welsh FA Chief Executive Noel Mooney has called on FIFA President Gianni Infantino to resign. Infantino is under huge pressure after his plans to sell off a stake in the World Cup to private equity backfired and Mooney has become the latest voice to criticise the FIFA boss. “If I was sitting with Gianni right now, I would say to him he’s had a very good career,” Mooney said in an interview to the BBC. “As General Secretary of UEFA he did very good things. At FIFA, there were things like, for example, the work Arsene Wenger has done with the technical development scheme – that have really moved forward. “But unfortunately, with this episode that took place, with the proposal to sell off the crown jewels if you will, I definitely think he should look to step down.” Earlier this month, Wales was one of the first countries to withdraw its support for Gianni Infantino. Mooney’s words reflect growing discontent with Infantino and callsfor him to resign. This week, FIFA Vice President Sandor Csanyi withdrew his support following the dismissal of FIFA’s COO Kevin Lamour, which the Hungarian called the final straw. Lamour had said that FIFA’s hierarchy had ‘deceived’ staff with their plans. From that moment on, his future at the organization had always been untenable. “The fact that his dismissal was prompted by his criticism of the above-mentioned initiative – an initiative that you yourself ultimately acknowledged to have been misguided – points to serious shortcomings in professional judgement, ethical standards and leadership,” wrote Csanyi in a letter. “There will be lots of discussions over the next few weeks,” Mooney said. “I am hoping Gianni is reflecting right now on his position. I assume people are speaking to him right now about considering his position and stepping down. “I think it is clear there is pressure on Gianni to consider his position, so let’s see what the coming days bring.” Mooney also called for a review of governance at FIFA. Last week, UEFA, AFC and Concacaf issued a joint letter signalling that Infantino must go. Contact the writer of this story, Samindra Kunti, at [email protected]