Kevin Lamour, FIFA’s chief operating officer, has left the governing body after publicly criticising President Gianni Infantino’s controversial plan to bring private investment into FIFA’s commercial operations.

FIFA confirmed the date its working relationship with Lamour ended on Aug. 17, 2026. In a statement the governing body thanked him for his two years of service and wished him well.

FIFA Secretary General Mattias Grafström also told staff that the organisation and Lamour had “agreed to part ways.”

This follows Lamour publicly criticising the proposed FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE), a planned FIFA-owned subsidiary that would combine commercial rights with the operational delivery of FIFA competitions. The proposal was intended to boost commercial revenue and possibly provide additional funding for FIFA’s 211 member associations, FIFA said.

The plan called for selling a minority stake of up to 20 per cent to private investors. The proposed investment is said to be about $4.2 billion. Plans were dropped in early August following strong opposition from the major football bodies.

Lamour publicly objected to the plan

Lamour had previously criticised the evolution of the FFE proposal before leaving FIFA.

“His proposal is a project of one person,” he told reporters, according to the Associated Press. He said FIFA employees were “deceived” in the process.

He added that FIFA’s administration had a duty to serve football and he was willing to face professional repercussions for speaking out.

His comments followed the resignation of Carlos Cordeiro, a senior adviser to Infantino and former president of U.S. Soccer, over the proposal. Cordeiro had previously called the proposed commercial venture a bad deal for football.

Lamour joined FIFA in November 2024 after working at UEFA. His resignation adds to the pressure on Infantino internally after the collapse of the investment proposal.

FFE plan shelved as pushed back

FIFA officially announced that the FFE proposal would not go ahead after opposition from several of the sport’s major governing bodies.

UEFA, CONCACAF and the Asian Football Confederation all objected to the plan. UEFA also threatened to boycott FIFA competitions if FIFA adopted the proposal.

Later, FIFA said divisions created by the proposal meant it no longer served the interests of the original objective.

The controversy also has an impact on Infantino’s political situation as he faces the FIFA presidential election in 2027.

UEFA and CONCACAF and the AFC have serious concerns about his leadership, and several national associations have pulled support. The Scottish Football Association was the latest to publicly withdraw its support for Infantino on August 17.

At the same time, Infantino enjoys significant backing in other segments of the football universe. African and South American confederations are still backing him, and a number of Arab national associations have also publicly supported his re-election bid.

The next presidential election of FIFA is scheduled to be held on March 18, 2027, in Rabat, Morocco.

Lamour has been contacted for comment on his exit.

Separately, football governance group FairSquare has called on FIFA to prevent Infantino from running for another term, saying his understanding of FIFA’s term-limit rules should be investigated. FIFA has so far refused to comment on the group’s latest complaint.