FIFA sacking Kevin Lamour sends ‘deeply troubling message’ – UEFA vice-president

By Jamie Gardner, Press Association Chief Sports Reporter

FIFA’s decision to dismiss senior executive Kevin Lamour sends a “deeply troubling message to all of us seeking change”, UEFA vice-president Laura McAllister has said.

FIFA confirmed Lamour’s departure as chief operating officer on Monday evening, just over two weeks after he released a statement to the Associated Press saying the FIFA administration had been “deceived” by president Gianni Infantino over a plan to sell stakes in a World Cup company to private investors.

Lamour’s statement on July 31, along with the resignation of senior adviser Carlos Cordeiro earlier the same day, heaped further pressure on Infantino, with Lamour describing the private investor plan as “the project of one person”.

Now UEFA executive committee member McAllister, a former Wales captain who worked with Lamour at European football’s governing body when he was its deputy general secretary, has spoken out to criticise his sacking.

“I know Kevin Lamour to be an honourable and exemplary sports leader who was a trusted colleague of mine when I was first elected to UEFA Ex Co,” McAllister said in a statement.

“Kevin is not only a deeply principled leader who cares passionately for football, but a brave advocate for the values that should underpin all we do as custodians of our game.

“During the shabby events of the past weeks, he showed himself to be a courageous advocate for the most important stakeholders in football.

“Having worked with Kevin, I know that his leadership always operates on principles of respect, independence, transparency and sound governance.

“Kevin’s sacking seriously weakens FIFA’s administration, whilst undermining this unique opportunity to shift the culture at FIFA and to reset the organisation on sporting values, not simply commercial and financial ones. FIFA is not the president, it is the whole football family.

“As I have said repeatedly, world football needs strong, principled, independent leaders who are prepared to speak up, challenge when necessary, and stand firmly by their values and those of the global game.

“Instead, the loss of a leader of Kevin’s calibre sends a deeply troubling message to all of us seeking change.”

Lamour was not part of the FIFA management board meeting in Morocco on August 5 where “full support” was declared by the board for Infantino.

UEFA, along with the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and CONCACAF, accused Infantino of “deception” over the private investor plan in an open letter published last week.

The Press Association understands the letter’s authors – which included confederation presidents Aleksander Ceferin, Sheikh Salman Bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa and Victor Montagliani – want Infantino to seize the opportunity to resign and leave his position with dignity.

A number of UEFA member associations have withdrawn their support for Infantino to stand again as FIFA president at next year’s Congress, with Israel the latest to do so on Tuesday.

Israel FA president, Moshe Zuares, wrote that recent developments had caused “an unprecedented crisis of trust”, adding: “The divide between the parties appears profound, substantive, and principled, compelling all stakeholders to reconsider the path forward.

“In the circumstances that have arisen, we have no choice but to retract our previous letter of support, in the sincere hope that fruitful dialogue among all parties will eventually restore a shared, proper vision and direction for world football.”

Infantino’s proposal to create a company, FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE), which would run the commercial and operational aspects of its tournaments, including the men’s and women’s World Cups, first emerged in reports in The Times and the Financial Times on July 28.

Later that day FIFA confirmed details of the plan, including the intention to sell a minority stake in FFE to private investors. FIFA said Thrive Eternal, a company founded by Joshua Kushner – the brother of United States President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner – would be the leader of the investor group.

Infantino eventually scrapped the plan, but UEFA is maintaining its threat to boycott FIFA tournaments first made when the FFE plan remained live, with the first FIFA event since the men’s World Cup being the Under-20 Women’s World Cup in Poland which gets under way next month.

Within the statement declaring support for Infantino published by FIFA on August 5 was a pledge to carry out a review of the procedures followed in developing the FFE plan, but almost two weeks on from announcing the review, FIFA has not set out who will conduct it.