The Fifa chief operating officer, Kevin Lamour, has been sacked after openly criticising Gianni Infantino’s ill-fated plan to sell parts of the World Cup to private investors.

In a significant development at the pinnacle of world football’s deeply troubled governing body, Lamour has departed less than two years after joining from a previous role at Uefa. He had come out strongly against Infantino’s FFE scheme after it was revealed, saying Fifa’s administration had been “deceived” and that the president “believes he embodies Fifa when he is supposed to be at its service”.

Lamour had also made clear that he would countenance losing his job as a consequence of opposing the plan, which was shelved hours after he spoke out on 31 July. “If that means I lose my job, then so be it,” he said in a statement. “I will understand and respect that decision. At least I’ll sleep well tonight.”