Soccer authorities in Europe, North and Central America and the Caribbean, and Asia have accused FIFA President Gianni Infantino of a "fundamental breach of trust" over his recently abandoned plan to sell an interest in the World Cup to private equity investors.
In an "open letter to the football family" released Monday, UEFA, CONCACAF and the AFC said that breaking trust through deception and placing an individual above the collective represented a failure of duty.
UEFA governs soccer in Europe, CONCACAF oversees the sport in North, Central America and the Caribbean, while the AFC is the governing body for Asian soccer.
The letter was signed by UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin, AFC President Salman Bin Ibrahim Al-Khalifa, CONCACAF President Victor Montagliani and the general secretaries of the three continental governing bodies.
"Football is the world's greatest shared passion. It belongs to no individual and no institution," the letter said, adding that the sport belongs to its players, fans, clubs, member associations and institutions responsible for protecting its future.
The statement came as Infantino faces growing opposition following the failure of his plan to sell stakes in the World Cup to private equity investors.
"It is not the conduct of a custodian of the game, but of one who believes the game is answerable to him," the letter said. It added that the decision to take a joint stance was made out of responsibility to the sport and not lightly.
Infantino received some support outside soccer, with U.S. President Donald Trump defending the FIFA president in a social media post Monday night.
"FIFA would be making a terrible mistake if, for any reason, they even considered replacing President Gianni Infantino," Trump wrote, praising him for presiding over what he described as the most successful World Cup ever.
UEFA had previously threatened to boycott the World Cup and other FIFA competitions, despite FIFA abandoning the plan and apologizing for the controversy.
Norway's soccer federation has called for Infantino to resign, while England's Football Association has withdrawn its support for his re-election next March.
"Football's strength has always been its unity. We call for that unity to be honored now," the letter said, calling for leadership that serves football rather than seeks to control it.
Last Wednesday, FIFA said it had apologized for mistakes made in connection with the failed plan. It also said senior officials at a crisis meeting in Morocco had "reaffirmed their full support" for Infantino's presidency.
However, the meeting itself has drawn criticism from the three continental federations.
"FIFA's own letter also confirms that only one elected official was present at the leadership meeting in Morocco," UEFA, CONCACAF and AFC said. "No FIFA Council members or Member Associations were invited to participate. Only the management committee, composed of FIFA-employed senior staff, was present."
The federations said FIFA needed to go beyond acknowledging that mistakes had been made.
They criticized FIFA for treating the controversy as a communication failure rather than a failure of judgment, saying the attempt to sell an interest in the World Cup represented a "fundamental breach of trust" with the institutions FIFA is meant to serve.
In a statement released Saturday, FIFA defended Infantino against what it described as a "concerted and ongoing effort" to undermine his leadership of the organization.