Baghdad: FIFA President Gianni Infantino has suffered another blow ahead of the upcoming elections, after the Serbian and Swedish football federations withdrew their support for his candidacy for another term. They join the Welsh federation, which had already taken the same step, amid escalating criticism of the FIFA president's administration in recent times.

According to National Iraqi News Agency, these developments follow the crisis sparked by FIFA's plan to sell a portion of the rights to major tournaments, most notably the World Cup, to private investors-an initiative the international federation recently abandoned after widespread objections from continental federations and stakeholders.

The Serbian Football Association confirmed in an official statement that it had decided to withdraw its support for Infantino, despite having given him written endorsement last May. The statement explained that a review of recent events showed that FIFA's reputation and that of its president had been significantly damaged, prompting the decision.

The statement added that the future of global football must be based on transparency, dialogue, and mutual respect among all federations, and that strategic decisions should only be made after extensive consultations and consensus among all parties. It stressed that the current phase requires new leadership capable of restoring trust and strengthening the credibility of international football institutions.

For its part, the Swedish Football Association announced, following an extraordinary meeting of its board, that it would not support Infantino in the upcoming elections, while Wales became the first national federation to officially withdraw its support.

These stances come amidst mounting pressure on the FIFA president, after both UEFA and CONCACAF declared their lack of confidence in his leadership, stemming from the crisis surrounding the investment project for FIFA tournaments.

FIFA had backed down from its plan to sell approximately 20% of a new entity overseeing international competitions, a deal that aimed to raise up to $4.2 billion, following strong opposition from several quarters within the global football community.