FIFA Leadership in Jeopardy? Sepp Blatter Advocates for a Sensational Solution

Former FIFA President Sepp Blatter has identified Norwegian football executive Lise Klaveness as a suitable candidate to succeed the embattled Gianni Infantino.

"Lise Klaveness deserves the highest respect," the 90-year-old stated on X (formerly Twitter). "She was the only one who consistently took a clear stance and did not conform to the mainstream. And the time is ripe for a woman to take leadership at FIFA." A female head of the global football governing body would mark a historic first, as only men have held the presidential office to date.

Klaveness, a former national team player, has been the President of the Norwegian Football Federation (NFF) since 2022 and has repeatedly demonstrated a firm international stance. Shortly after assuming her role, she delivered a powerful speech at the FIFA Congress in Doha, criticizing the world football organization for awarding the World Cup to Qatar. She also raised her voice following the questionable awarding of FIFA's Peace Prize to Donald Trump, joining with her federation to support a complaint filed by human rights organization FairSquare.

FIFA boss Infantino recently attempted to sell stakes in the Football World Cup and other tournaments to investors. Following strong opposition, he abandoned the initiative, which he had largely launched single-handedly. Numerous European federations have since withdrawn their support for his re-election. Infantino is seeking a third and final four-year term as FIFA chief, with elections scheduled for March 18th of next year in Rabat, Morocco.

Potential successors are already being publicly discussed, including UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin, CONCACAF boss Victor Montagliani, and now Klaveness. Blatter himself resigned as FIFA President in 2015 following the revelation of a corruption scandal, and Infantino was elected as his successor a year later.