Since FIFA was founded in Paris on 21 May 1904, only nine men have ever led the world football’s governing body, making the presidency one of the most exclusive jobs in global sport.

The role has passed through the hands of administrators from just five countries: France, England, Belgium, Brazil and Switzerland. Neither Africa nor Asia has ever produced an elected FIFA president, despite both continents now making up the bulk of FIFA’s 211-member federation.

Longevity in the role has varied wildly. Jules Rimet of France set the bar impossibly high, running FIFA for 33 years between 1921 and 1954, still the longest reign in the organisation’s history.

It was Rimet who pushed through the idea of a World Cup, and the original trophy was even named after him. Brazil’s João Havelange comes second, with 24 years in charge from 1974 to 1998, a period that turned FIFA into the commercial giant it is today through sponsorship deals and World Cup expansion.

Sepp Blatter followed with 17 years at the helm before his presidency collapsed in scandal — he was impeached on 8 October 2015 and hit with an eight-year ban from football activity, later reduced and then renewed for a further six years in 2021.

Not every president left office on their own terms, either. Three of FIFA’s early leaders, Daniel Burley Woolfall, Rodolphe Seeldrayers and Arthur Drewry, died while still serving in the role, a reminder of how young and turbulent the organisation’s first decades really were.

One name stands out for African football fans: Cameroon’s Issa Hayatou, who stepped in as acting FIFA president in the gap between Blatter’s impeachment and the election of his successor.

It was brief, but it marked one of the few times an African administrator has sat at the very top of world football.

That successor, Gianni Infantino, has run FIFA since 26 February 2016 and has cruised through two unopposed re-elections, in 2019 and 2023.

Under his watch, FIFA delivered the 2026 World Cup across the United States, Mexico and Canada, the first edition ever to feature 48 teams.

But Infantino’s bid for a third term is running into real resistance, with UEFA and other confederations reportedly threatening to boycott FIFA competitions over a disputed World Cup investment plan.

The next presidential election is expected in Rabat, Morocco, in March 2027, and if Infantino wins and serves out a full fourth term, he’d reach 15 years in the job, overtaking Stanley Rous and Daniel Burley Woolfall to become the fourth-longest-serving president in FIFA’s history.