Ceferin confirms fourth-term UEFA bid as associations back FIFA reform

Aleksander Ceferin will seek a fourth term as UEFA president, reversing his previous position as European football's governing body presses for changes at FIFA. BBC Sport reported on October 8 that Ceferin informed the leaders of all 55 UEFA national associations of his decision at a meeting in Berlin, where the organisation also presented a 14-point programme for reforming the world governing body.

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Ceferin, who first became UEFA president in 2016, had said in February 2024 that he would not seek re-election. That announcement came amid a dispute over changes to UEFA's statutes that allowed him to pursue a fourth term. Explaining his latest decision, he thanked the national associations for their support and said he had accepted their request to continue, with further work needed to strengthen and unite European football.

The Berlin meeting also produced agreement between UEFA and 54 of its member associations on a direction for FIFA reform, according to the BBC report. Azerbaijan was the exception. UEFA's proposals seek to reduce some powers held directly by the FIFA president and to protect bodies responsible for ethics and disciplinary oversight from interference by the president or other executives.

The programme also calls for FIFA resources to be kept separate from personal and electoral interests. On development funding, UEFA proposed making at least an additional $10 million available to each of FIFA's 211 member associations. These measures were presented as demands for change, rather than policies already adopted by FIFA, alongside UEFA's renewed call for different leadership at the organisation.

The push follows opposition to Gianni Infantino's plan to sell stakes in the World Cup to private investors, which he subsequently abandoned. BBC Sport reported that UEFA's governance proposals address presidential authority that had enabled the FIFA Forward Enterprise proposal to be developed behind closed doors. UEFA argued that institutional changes alone would be insufficient without a new leader capable of winning confidence across football's regions.

Ceferin has ruled out challenging Infantino himself, despite backing efforts to find an alternative candidate. Infantino is seeking a fourth term in the presidential election in March, with a nomination deadline of November 18. According to the BBC report, no confirmed challenger had emerged. Ceferin's announcement therefore concerns his own future at UEFA, while the separate search for a FIFA presidential candidate remains unresolved.