Sepp Blatter, the former head honcho at Fifa, is calling for Gianni Infantino to get the boot from his president role, flat out claiming the recent World Cup totally lost its credibility because of Infantino’s moves.
The Ban Reversal That Broke the Game’s Trust
What’s got Blatter so absolutely furious? It all comes back to a wild, controversial flip-flop on USA striker Folarin Balogun’s red card ban. Picture this: Balogun gets flagged against Bosnia. Red card, right? But then, US president Donald Trump steps in, actually getting on the phone to Infantino. And next thing you know, Fifa pulls an *unprecedented* move, suspending Balogun’s ban for a whole year! Can you even believe that? This allowed him to play in the last-16 match against Belgium, a game the US got absolutely hammered in, losing 4-1. Blatter, who’s had his own share of accusations during his Fifa presidency, is now pointing fingers, insisting that “politics must not be allowed to overshadow the game.” It’s like, come on, we just want to watch football, not political chess!
Calls for Change Are Loud, But Will Anyone Listen?
Blatter didn’t stop there. He took to social media after the World Cup wrapped up, reflecting on Spain beating Argentina 1-0 in extra time in an ill-tempered final. He wrote, “The longest World Cup has come to an end , with the right champions. But on the way to the final whistle, the tournament had lost its credibility.” He thinks it’s now squarely up to the fans, players, and national associations to “reclaim football and bring it back to its roots under new leadership.” He even threw in some pointed hashtags like ‘Fifa half-time show,’ ‘Donald Trump,’ and ‘Gianni Infantino.’
And get this, he isn’t the only one absolutely sounding the alarm. LaLiga president Javier Tebas didn’t hold back either, specifically calling out that bonkers Balogun incident. Tebas told an Italian newspaper that “The suspension of the American player’s ban is an extremely serious matter.” He even said they got lucky Belgium knocked out the US, because otherwise, “a case could have arisen that might have cost Infantino his job.” Tebas is straight up convinced Fifa is “destroying the football industry” by pushing for more international competitions over the lifeblood of domestic leagues and clubs. When asked if Infantino should quit, Tebas’s answer was a resounding yes: “In my opinion, yes, I think his time is up.” That’s some serious heat!
Despite all this scorching criticism, Infantino already said back in April he’s gunning for a fourth term as Fifa president, with the vote coming up in Morocco on March 18 next year. But don’t expect a big challenger; Tebas isn’t optimistic about any real opposition, saying, “He shouldn’t stay, but the current state of affairs means he won’t leave. There’s no opposition candidate; no one wants to run to lose.” Even Uefa president Aleksander Ceferin skipped the World Cup final after a string of disagreements with Fifa. It’s clear there’s some serious drama brewing at the top, and fans around the world are watching to see if football can actually be “brought back to its roots” from all this political mess.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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