FIFA president, Gianni Infantino, has come in for heavy criticism from his predecessor, Sepp Blatter, and La Liga’s president, Javier Tebas, with the pair united in the belief he should stand down.
As Spain celebrated their World Cup win on Sunday, Tebas accused Infantino of “destroying the football industry” by prioritising the World Cup over national competitions.
He claimed “His time is up.”
Reclaim football
Blatter has called for “fans, players and national associations to reclaim football and bring it back to its roots under new leadership”.
Tebas is particularly opposed to the Fifa president’s enthusiasm for expanding the 2030 tournament to 64 teams from 48. “Increasing the number of national teams makes no sense,” Tebas told Italy’s La Gazzetta dello Sport.
“The football industry is not just the World Cup. Not everything can revolve around the World Cup. It is national competitions that support this sport.
“They are destroying the football industry, which generates tens of thousands of jobs, for an event that lasts 40 days and involves a minority of players. We need fewer national teams and more protection for national football, at all levels. They don’t realise they are making irresponsible decisions.”
Tebas believes Infantino should resign, although he admits he finds it hard to envisage such a scenario. “He has the support of the system, of the federations,” he said. “There is no opposition candidate; nobody wants to stand just to lose. It is a system rotten at its core.
Decade rule
After 10 years at FIFA’s helm, Infantino is poised to be re-elected for a fourth term in March, potentially standing unopposed for the third time in a row, but Tebas believed the Swiss was potentially a USA World Cup win away from being forced out. He argues that, had the USA defeated Belgium in their last-16 game, Infantino might been mired in an unrecoverable scandal.
The USA striker Folarin Balogun had a one-match ban suspended by FIFA’s disciplinary committee, facilitating his involvement against Belgium. The decision was taken after a phone call made to Infantino by Donald Trump. Infantino said the decision to overturn Balogun’s ban was made independently by its disciplinary committee “based on the applicable regulations and the specific facts”.
Tebas said: “The suspension of the American player’s ban was absolutely serious. They were lucky Belgium eliminated the USA because a case could have arisen that might have cost Infantino his job. Since Belgium won they were able to bury the matter. But these things are just the tip of the iceberg.”
Blatter, appears to regard the Balogun case as a tipping point. “The longest World Cup has come to an end with the right champions,” he wrote on X.
Lost credibility
“But on the way to the final whistle, the tournament lost its credibility. Politics must not be allowed to overshadow the game.”
Tebas feels much the same about hydration breaks and extended half-time intervals. “FIFA arranges things as it wants, for what it wants, for its own interests, certainly not football,” he said. “So if they need a 27-minute half-time break, they’ll have it.
“Hydration breaks are a lie. We have them in La Liga, but when it’s genuinely hot. Here, the pitches in Dallas, Los Angeles, Atlanta had air conditioning; I had to put a jumper on in the stands. It was a lie, a break for advertising.”
FIFA has been approached for comment.
