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Why women's football is first casualty of Fifa plans

Fifa's president Gianni Infantino's plans will make women's football "the first casualties" according to former England defender Anita Asante.

RelxNews Staff31 July 2026 at 13:25 UTC1 min read
Why women's football is first casualty of Fifa plans

Women's football will be the first to suffer if Fifa president Gianni Infantino's plan to sell stakes in competitions to private investors goes ahead, according to former England defender Anita Asante.

On Thursday European football's 55 member associations voted to boycott all Fifa competitions until the governing body drops Infantino's proposals.

Uefa's stance will first be tested when the Fifa Under-20 Women's World Cup starts on 5 September in Poland.

"I don't think Fifa have considered the implications of their decision."

The Polish Football Association (PZPN) said on Friday it has not received any information about teams withdrawing from the competition and preparations are continuing as planned.

In October, England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales all have qualifiers for next summer's Women's World Cup in Brazil.

And the Under-17 Women's World Cup is scheduled to take place in October in Morocco.

"That's what's so frustrating for players. You can't take for granted the opportunity to play in the World Cup," said Asante.

"If this isn't resolved by the time of England's qualifiers, then the impact could be huge and it is already a busy schedule."

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