England defender Lucy Bronze has publicly backed a potential FIFA World Cup boycott, making her the first player from the nation to do so. The stance aligns with UEFA's position, which has stated it will boycott the competition unless FIFA President Gianni Infantino is removed from his post.
UEFA reiterated its loss of confidence in the FIFA president following his now-abandoned plan to sell stakes in the World Cup. The European governing body had previously indicated that its self-imposed ban would only be lifted if Infantino's proposal was withdrawn and assurances were given that such actions would not be repeated. Current indications suggest that anything less than Infantino's resignation may not be sufficient to ensure the participation of teams like Spain, England, France, and Germany in future tournaments.
Bronze expressed her support, stating that a boycott "has to happen" if it is for the "right thing" for football. "The players who play in those competitions, the European players, we stand by our beliefs and what the right thing is for our game," she said. "If that means boycotting competitions, then that has to happen. It's for the future of the game and not just for me today and tomorrow, it's for all the little girls or little boys who come after us to make sure that they're in a good place, when the game is moving forward in decades to come, not just tomorrow."
The 2027 Women's World Cup, scheduled to take place in Brazil, could be affected by the ongoing dispute. Bronze's potential participation in her fourth World Cup is uncertain due to the current situation.
FIFA announced Wednesday that Infantino had received the backing of its council members after crisis talks in Morocco. Infantino had convened officials at his hotel in an apparent effort to retain power amid significant backlash over the World Cup commercial plans. Following the meeting, FIFA issued a statement indicating that executives had given Infantino their "full support" while acknowledging "mistakes" in the withdrawn proposal. FIFA has since apologized to various football associations in a letter and stated that a review will be conducted.
Earlier, UEFA had described Infantino's proposal as a "shabby, back room, opaque deal." Following the announcement of Infantino's vote of confidence, UEFA added that its associations had been clear on the conditions for non-participation in FIFA competitions. "First, the proposals to sell off the major competitions had to be withdrawn and secondly, assurances have to be made that such attempts to disfigure the game in this way will never be made again," UEFA stated. The organization concluded that these conditions had not been met and that its loss of confidence in Infantino's presidency remains unchanged, asserting that the announcement of support from FIFA President's staff does not alter their position.