Former Switzerland international Ramon Vega has announced his candidacy for the FIFA presidency, launching an 11-page manifesto as he prepares to challenge incumbent Gianni Infantino at the election next March. Vega, 55, says he has strong support to contest the vote and argues that his background uniquely combines elite professional football with international finance and governance.
A career bridging football and finance
Vega, who won the League Cup with Tottenham and a domestic treble with Celtic, said football is "woven into the very fabric of my being" and that he is standing because his life prepared him to serve the game. He claimed the sport has been left "facing a serious crisis of trust and identity" and pledged to put fans and players at the centre of his vision.
"I was a defender on the field. I am ready to defend the game — its integrity, its people and its future," he said. Vega, who has been preparing to seek the presidency since 2015, noted that concerns he raised during previous attempts — including his 2022 campaign, which ended under what he describes as "difficult and deeply questionable circumstances" — have become increasingly visible across world football.
Reform and unity at the core
Vega said his candidacy would focus on restoring trust in FIFA, strengthening institutional governance, protecting the independence of member associations, ensuring fairer distribution of financial resources, and creating a more transparent and inclusive decision-making system. "I am not standing to continue the war. I am standing to end it," he said.
He also highlighted the role of his wife, Claudia, whom he described as his partner throughout the mission and a woman with her own history in football. Vega said she worked in technical and operational roles in men's UEFA Champions League, UEFA Cup and international competition more than 25 years ago, when few women worked at the highest levels of the men's professional game.
Deadline and support
Vega said associations across different confederations have encouraged him to pursue the candidacy, and that he had communicated his intention to stand to one of FIFA's vice presidents before the World Cup. Candidates must receive the backing of at least five federations by the November 18 deadline, and Vega says he has that support to go up against Infantino, who has confirmed he plans to stand again.
"Football is the people's game. It belongs to everyone — players, coaches, referees, volunteers, communities and the billions of fans who give the game its soul," he said, adding that the game is "in the emergency room, on life support" and that "power-driven individuals must never again be allowed to govern our game."
Vega, who speaks six languages and has a degree in economics and finance, criticised high ticket prices at the last World Cup and called for a responsible international calendar that protects players' welfare. "The game belongs to the people. The fans are being priced out. The game is losing its soul," he said. "I am standing to reunite the global football family, deliver genuine and lasting reforms, modernise FIFA for the 21st century, restore stability and credibility, and rebuild the trust that our game urgently needs."
