Multiple flights in a single day. Nearly 60,000 miles. More than 100 hours aloft.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino got some serious air time over the course of the 2026 World Cup, the tournament’s most far-flung editionever. He crisscrossed North America for matches, meetings and other appearances during the competition, which took place in three countries, 16 cities and four time zones, and ends with Sunday’s final in New Jersey.
To track his travels, The Associated Press analyzed flight logs for a private business jet used by Infantino in recent years, along with photos taken by AP photographers and images posted on Instagram by FIFA and the head of world soccer’s governing body himself. The analysis shows that by the time either Argentina or Spain emerges as champion, he will have flown far enough to circle the planet almost 2 1/2 times.
Access to a Gulfstream G650 jet from the fleet of the Qatari government made Infantino’s prodigious jet-setting possible. The aircraft is operated by the private charter division of Qatar Airways, a World Cup sponsor.
Since a June 9 flight from Los Angeles to Mexico City ahead of the tournament’s opening match, the aircraft averaged more than one flight a day and on multiple days made more than three, according to flight-tracking site FlightAware.
