FILE - FIFA President Gianni Infantino gestures as he arrives to attend the draw for the 2026 soccer World Cup at the Kennedy Center in Washington, Friday, Dec. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)FIFA president Gianni Infantino has boasted about having the backing of the “vast, vast majority” of football ahead of his re-election bid. The embattled chief of football has faced calls to step down after a failed plan to sell stakes in the FIFA World Cup earlier this year.The reality of that claim will become clear next year when the FIFA elections happen, where Infantino will contest the polls again. Infantino’s popularity has suffered after his proposal to sell profits in the World Cup through a commercial subsidiary. It was a plan that proved divisive with football federations in Europe, North America and Asia up in arms. Over a month after abandoning the plan, Infantino recently had to apologise to federations during the FIFA Council meeting.Now, in an interview released on Saturday with the BBC at the Under-15 World Cup in Azerbaijan, Infantino brushed off calls for him to step down. The comments came after the Asian Football Confederation, on Friday, endorsed Infantino for another term in an apparent turnaround in its stance from two months ago when it criticized him for a breach of trust.“Well, you know, I was elected by 211 member associations from all over the world,” Infantino said. “I think what is important is that in an organization like FIFA there can be different views, different points of view.“But if we are serious about democracy, about the democratic process, about believing that everyone has the same vote and the same voice all over the world, that football belongs to everyone, if we are serious about that, then we need to respect as well the views of the vast, vast majority.”Infantino is standing for a final term in office in March. The deadline for opposition candidates is November 18.His latest comments came after he apologized to FIFA’s ruling council last week for “mistakes” in his secretive investment plan for the World Cup.Story continues below this adDespite his apology, European delegates said they left the meeting disappointed about what they saw as a lack of clarity.(With inputs from AP)