Gianni Infantino is still in the limelight despite the World Cup having finished.
The Swiss administrator is already one of FIFA’s most divisive presidents, having presided over history’s most commercial World Cup in the U.S. and two of the most ethically contentious in Russia and Qatar respectively.
With a six-country, 104-team World Cup in 2030 on the horizon and Saudi Arabia set to host in 2034, expect the controversies to keep rolling.
And even before then, Infantino will continue his expansionism in the club game, with another 32-team (at least) Club World Cup in 2029 with a $1bn prize pot.
This summer, Infantino continued the charm offensive with Donald Trump; allegedly intervened to have a host nation’s star striker’s ban overturned; introduced hydration-cum-commercial breaks; sold million-dollar tickets; introduced a FIFA-sanctioned scalping platform; and so many other brouhahas that it seemed as though he was deliberately mimicking the U.S. President’s flood-the-zone strategy.
And more than a week on since Spain slayed Argentina in the final in New Jersey, Infantino is still making himself centre of attention.
Could he be ousted as FIFA president? Unlikely.
World football’s governing body’s constitution runs on a one nation, one vote principle. That means the Cape Verdes and Curacaos of this world have the same sway when it comes to electing the president. Infantino’s expansionism suits them just fine. Understandably and perhaps justifiably, they would surely veto any serious attempts to remove the 56-year-old.
But there is a growing political will to remove him. And one of the biggest names in football’s political ecosystem has added his voice to that chorus.
La Liga president Javier Tebas addresses Infantino rant
A week ago, Javier Tebas, the outspoken president of Spanish first division La Liga, said “time is up” for Infantino as head of FIFA, though he recognised that “the current state of affairs means he won’t leave.”
Now, after Infantino’s now well-publicised essay criticising those spreading “hate and false rumours”, Tebas has doubled down. In doing so, he has further solidified his position as probably the most powerful voice in football administration to have publicly called for Infantino to go. While he has no formal power, the former lawyer has immense leverage in the discourse among administrators and football associations.
Written in Spanish, Tebas’ post on X labelled Infantino’s essay “pathetic” and said that “transparency, good governance, and accountability are never hate” but rather an “obligation” of good governance.
He also asked: “Why precisely now? Is there something that explains such a defensive tone? Is something happening that we don’t know about?”
Human rights organisation FairSquare have filed an official complaint against Infantino with both FIFA and the International Olympic Committee alleging that he has breached both organisations’ rules on political neutrality.
The IOC – of which Infantino is a board member – said the complaint was outside of their jurisdiction. FIFA’s Ethics Committee have not yet responded.
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