Gianni Infantino walked onto his stage with some delay – and then wasted no time in announcing big promises.
From 2025, FIFA will organize the Club World Cup as a world tournament with 32 teams, a World Series for test matches will start in the same year, and by 2026 the football governing body expects sales in the region of eleven billion US dollars. Almost incidentally, the FIFA President also reported during his hour-long appearance in the theater of the World Cup media center in Qatar that, in accordance with the statutes, he would be able to remain in office with two re-elections until 2031. The eternal Infantino?
“Ten billion flow directly back into football,” said the Swiss during his final press conference, indirectly explaining the basic principle of FIFA elections. The world association pays out enormous sums and thus ensures the satisfaction of the majority of the 211 member associations, who are already loyal to Infantino. He is in his “first term,” said Infantino after a unanimous clarification in the FIFA Council, which is both bizarre and correct.
No opponent for Infantino
The Swiss took over the remainder of his first three years at FIFA from 2016 to 2019 from his predecessor Joseph Blatter, who was elected in May 2015 and resigned shortly thereafter. The confirmation in office followed three and a half years ago in Paris, in March Infantino, who has been heavily criticized in Germany, will stand for re-election in Kigali without a contestant. A FIFA President may serve a maximum of three terms. The German Football Association has so far refused to provide support, but that can a) still change and b) has no significant impact on the result anyway.
“Everything is possible with money,” said a dpa official who was once closely linked to FIFA. Already in the four-year cycle to the end of this year, the turnover result is 7.5 billion US dollars and thus one billion US dollars higher than expected. “At a time that was hit hard by a pandemic,” Infantino said. “That is extraordinary.” The forecast for the end of 2026 does not even include the new mega World Cup for club teams. Marketing results are likely to have a significant impact. Even more money “back to football,” said Infantino.
The new tournament, which is planned every four years, will replace the previous Mini World Cup, which will be kicked off for 2022 next February in Morocco with seven more teams. The six continental champions (Real Madrid for Europe) and the host are set. The new format promises to be “really like a World Cup,” Infantino said. The details are still being discussed, including hosts and participating teams. In principle, the top German clubs around FC Bayern should have increased chances of an invitation. The introduction of a Club World Cup for women’s teams is still in the planning phase.
All of this was decided in principle by the Council with former DFL Supervisory Board Chairman Peter Peters. In the even-numbered years with World Cup or European Championship alignment, four-man tournaments of national teams from different continents are to be organized in the international game window in March, the “World Series” games. The term is known from North American baseball. The World Cup in Qatar showed how great games between teams from different confederations can be, Infantino said.
The World Leagues Forum (WLF), a global association of more than 40 professional football leagues, has sharply criticized FIFA for the calendar reforms. “These decisions were made unilaterally, without consultation, let alone consent, by those who are directly affected: the leagues, their member clubs, the players and fans,” the WLF said in a statement on Friday. The changes could have “harmful consequences for football and the well-being of players,” it said.
“Many people came to Qatar and discovered the Arab world that they didn’t know or only knew from the media,” said Infantino. “At the same time, the people of Qatar have welcomed many people from all over the world.” The world has seen that “people are basically positive and not negative. They are good and not bad,” said Infantino. He pointed out that the 62 World Cup games up to Friday had so far been played without incident.
Infantino: Rules must be obeyed
The Swiss spoke marginally about the heated debate about the “One Love” captain’s armband, in which he himself had not previously been quoted. “It’s not about banning something, it’s about following the rules,” the 52-year-old replied to a question about the bandage. “Football is played on the football field. Everyone can express their opinion, but when you go on the field we have to respect football. It’s nothing new.” It’s about protecting football.
The German national team and other top European teams wanted to appear in Qatar with the “One Love” armband as a sign of tolerance and diversity. FIFA prohibited this at very short notice and threatened sporting sanctions. When asked about the resulting criticism and denied support from countries like Denmark and Germany for his re-election, Infantino said: “211 countries worldwide are represented in FIFA. I am very grateful and proud of the more than 200 associations that support me. Thank you the others too.”
