Times have been good for Fifa under president Gianni Infantino. It pulled off the largest-ever World Cup this summer, with the organisation’s revenue growing to $15 billion: three times what it was when Infantino took over a decade ago. Yet, ask most football fans their opinion of this most successful of Fifa chiefs and their verdict is unanimously scathing. He’s everyone’s favourite pantomime villain; the Blofeld of the Beautiful Game.
It’s not hard to see why in recent months. For Infantino, football is a means to an end. He courted Donald Trump by giving him the freshly invented ‘Fifa Peace Prize’ in December and, during the tournament, reportedly suspended American striker Folarin Balogun’s red card after a phone call from the US President. The sleaze was blatant but his grip on Fifa meant that more than 200 of the 211 countries endorsed his re-election last month, which should see him remain in post until 2031.
But, weeks later, it began to unravel. Infantino announced the ‘Fifa Forward Enterprise’ (FFE), a plan to sell off commercial stakes in the World Cup to make around $20 billion. He tried to bounce members into accepting the plan within six weeks, with no discussion. Members rejected it outright and are now pulling their endorsements; just yesterday Norway was the latest to call on him to stand down.
