17/08/2026
BREAKING: Kevin Lamour has left his position as chief operating officer at FIFA. Lamour’s departure comes after the FIFA executive released a statement to the Associated Press on July 31 criticising Gianni Infantino, the FIFA president, amid the fallout from the abandoned FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE) proposal.
Lamour told AP that staff had been “deceived” by Infantino regarding the FFE plan, which would have seen world soccer’s governing body make stakes in the World Cup available for private investment. A FIFA spokesperson said in a statement to The Athletic: “FIFA can confirm that the working relationship between FIFA and Kevin Lamour as FIFA’s Chief Operating Officer has ended on 17 August 2026.
“FIFA thanks Kevin for his two years of service and wishes him the best of luck for the future. “No further comment will be made on the matter.” Lamour, who previously worked with Infantino at UEFA, the governing body for European football, told AP in July: “It is the project of one person “Not only must this project not go ahead … but the time has now come for football political leaders to ask themselves the right questions and make the right decisions.” Lamour also said that we was prepared to lose his job over speaking out publicly. “If that means I lose my job, then so be it,” his statement to AP added. “I will understand and respect that decision. At least I’ll sleep well tonight.”
Mattias Grafstrom, FIFA’s secretary general, informed staff at FIFA via email that Lamour would be leaving the organisation and also thanked him for his service. Lamour’s departure follows that of Infantino’s senior advisor Carlos Cordeiro, who resigned in July due to his opposition to the FFE plans.
