FIFA Condemns Allegations Against President Infantino and Reaffirms Support
FIFA has issued a strong condemnation regarding what it describes as a “concerted and ongoing effort” to “undermine” the organization and its president, Gianni Infantino. This statement follows a report from the Daily Telegraph, which suggested that Infantino’s alleged lover received a severance payment from UEFA after an affair that occurred when he served as its general secretary.
A FIFA spokesperson conveyed to the Telegraph, “FIFA president Gianni Infantino strongly denies these allegations, and they are categorically untrue. Any insinuation of inappropriate conduct or violation of statutes or regulations is defamatory.” FIFA also criticized what it called “unsubstantiated assertions and demonstrably false claims,” stating that “speculation and insinuation should not be presented as fact.”
Infantino has faced increasing scrutiny from UEFA and various European football associations due to his halted FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE) proposal. This initiative would have established a new company for managing commercial and ticketing rights, with 21% allocated to a private investment firm.
UEFA has expressed a loss of confidence in Infantino, and Lise Klaveness, president of the Norwegian Football Federation, has urged the Swiss-Italian to resign. UEFA has indicated that its threat to boycott FIFA events still stands, stating that reassurances about the FFE plan’s revival have not been received.
FIFA’s statement highlighted that “the FIFA president was democratically elected by FIFA’s Member Associations and continues to serve with their mandate,” further noting the existence of efforts to undermine the organization. It remarked, “Those who do not have the support of FIFA’s member associations should not seek to achieve through allegation, insinuation or misinformation what they cannot achieve through FIFA’s established democratic processes.”
Resistance to Infantino appears predominantly from European factions, although the Mexican Football Federation has expressed its support for him, breaking away from its regional governing body, CONCACAF. This position aligns with the South American football authority, CONMEBOL, which emphasized that any attempts to remove Infantino should involve a vote from all 211 FIFA member countries. Additionally, Infantino has garnered unanimous backing from the 54 nations in the Confederation of African Football (CAF).
Infantino recently convened a meeting with members of the FIFA management board in Rabat, Morocco. A statement from Infantino and Secretary General Mattias Grafstrom issued an apology regarding the FFE proposal while asserting that FIFA would not tolerate further attacks on its integrity and governance.
FIFA’s defense included the assertion that “change inevitably challenges established interests,” maintaining that disagreement with reforms does not justify efforts to undermine the democratic mandate entrusted to Infantino. The organization welcomed legitimate scrutiny but clarified that this does not authorize distortion of facts or the propagation of unfounded allegations aimed at distracting from progress.
FIFA concluded its statement by declaring that it will “challenge directly and vigorously” any reporting deemed inaccurate or misleading.
Fifa has strongly criticised what it calls a “concerted and ongoing effort” to “undermine” the organisation and its president Gianni Infantino.
The statement follows a Daily Telegraph report which claimed Infantino’s alleged lover was given a severance payment by Uefa after he had an affair while he was its general secretary.
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“Fifa president Gianni Infantino strongly denies these allegations, and they are categorically untrue. Any insinuation of inappropriate conduct or violation of statutes or regulations is defamatory,” a Fifa spokesperson told the Telegraph.
Fifa has how itself hit out at “unsubstantiated assertions and demonstrably false claims”, adding that “speculation and insinuation should not be presented as fact”.
Infantino has come under increasing pressure from Uefa and European football associations over his aborted Fifa Forward Enterprise (FFE) proposal.
FFE would have meant a new company being created to manage commercial and ticketing rights, with 21% sold off to a private investment company.
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Uefa has said it has lost confidence in Infantino, while Norwegian Football Federation (NFF) president Lise Klaveness on Friday called on the Swiss-Italian to resign.
European football’s governing body says its threat to boycott Fifa events remains on the table, adding that assurances the FFE plan could not be revived have not been received.
“The Fifa president was democratically elected by Fifa’s Member Associations and continues to serve with their mandate,” Fifa said in its statement on Saturday.
“It is increasingly evident that there is a concerted and ongoing effort by some to undermine Fifa and its president.
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“Those who do not have the support of Fifa’s member associations should not seek to achieve through allegation, insinuation or misinformation what they cannot achieve through Fifa’s established democratic processes.”
Opposition to Infantino is largely from within Europe.
The Mexican Football Federation broke ranks with its regional governing body Concacaf to come out in support of Infantino.
It echoed a statement from Conmebol – South America’s governing body – in saying it would reject any attempt to remove Infantino without a vote involving all 211 Fifa member countries.
Infantino is also unanimously backed by the 54 nations of the Confederation of African Football (Caf).
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Scrutiny not licence to distort facts – Fifa
Infantino called members of the Fifa management board to a meeting in Rabat, Morocco on Wednesday.
Fifa issued a statement on behalf of Infantino and secretary general Mattias Grafstrom which apologised for the FFE proposal, but also said it would “no longer tolerate any attacks on its integrity, good governance and due process”.
The statement released late on Saturday evening was similarly defensive about the criticism the organisation has faced.
“Change inevitably challenges established interests, but disagreement with that change cannot justify efforts to undermine the democratic mandate of Fifa’s president or the institution he was elected to lead,” it added.
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“Fifa welcomes legitimate scrutiny. But scrutiny is not a licence to distort facts, amplify unsubstantiated allegations or manufacture distractions designed to undermine progress.
“Where reporting is inaccurate or misleading, Fifa will challenge it directly and vigorously.”
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