Infantino apologizes for mistakes, remains as FIFA president

Football's top governing body, Gianni Infantino, has apologized for mistakes amid the controversy over the management of World Cup rights and some of FIFA's recent decisions.

However, he said he has no plans to step down despite calls for his resignation.

According to a Reuters report, FIFA policymakers reiterated their full support for Infantino after an emergency meeting held at FIFA's regional office in Salé, Morocco.

Admitting procedural mistakes

In a joint statement released by FIFA, Infantino and Secretary General Matthias Grafström signed.

In the statement, Infantino admitted that there were some mistakes in the process of proposing the formation of the 'FIFA Forward Enterprise'. He also mentioned that member associations and the FIFA Council should have been more involved.

He said that there were also some mistakes in handling the situation after the matter was published in the media. He also promised to be careful to prevent such incidents from happening in the future.

Rejection of resignation demands

Despite calls for Infantino's resignation from various quarters, FIFA authorities have rejected them.

FIFA said that the organization has full confidence in Infantino as an official elected by the votes of 211 member countries.

At the same time, FIFA said that the controversial plan has been withdrawn. After that, if there are baseless attacks on the organization's image and good governance, necessary legal action may be taken.

Message to continue in office despite criticism

According to the British newspaper The Guardian, Infantino met with FIFA Secretary General Mathias Grafström and Chief Legal Officer Emilio Garcia Silvero on Wednesday.

He expressed his desire to continue in his position despite criticism from several football organizations including UEFA and CONCACAF.

Infantino and Grafström were seen together at an Africa Cup of Nations match, in what is seen as a message of internal unity within FIFA.

Infantino also plans to attend the swearing-in ceremony of the country's new president in Colombia as part of continuing his duties as normal.