Gianni Infantino, the FIFA president, flat out ignored a request from one of his own vice presidents, Victor Montagliani, to stay away from an Under-14 soccer event in the Caribbean this past weekend. Infantino made a rare public appearance during a global furor over his failed plan to sell future World Cup profits to private investors. He even posted photos on Instagram from the Punta Cana resort, meeting with political and soccer officials from the Dominican Republic on the sidelines of a Caribbean Football Union youth tournament.
Montagliani’s Warning and FIFA’s Real Crisis
Montagliani, who heads CONCACAF, didn’t want Infantino there. He’d sent an emailed letter asking the FIFA president to reconsider, worried Infantino’s presence would be a massive distraction. Montagliani wrote, “I believe that considering the governance crisis surrounding FIFA as a result of your controversial FIFA Forward Enterprise proposal, the media will focus on this situation, which will unfortunately significantly take away from the technical nature of the CFU youth competition.” He believed Infantino would “undermine the technical nature of this important youth development activity.” FIFA, for its part, wouldn’t comment on Montagliani’s request, though they did note they fund regional bodies like the CFU with up to $5 million from each four-year World Cup cycle. Montagliani isn’t alone in this fight either, aligning with UEFA’s Aleksander Ceferin and AFC’s Sheik Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa. These heavy hitters are all trying to end Infantino’s increasingly executive presidency, which is now in its eleventh year. They accused him of “deception” just two weeks ago, claiming he secretly planned to spin off FIFA’s multi-billion dollar commercial activities to a subsidiary, 20% owned by investors led by Joshua Kushner. Infantino finally backed off the project on August 1 after a global backlash from soccer leaders and fans. Hours after he pulled the plug, his own chief operating officer published stinging criticism of the proposal and his leadership style. That COO, Kevin Lamour, was fired this week. You connect the dots.
Dodging the Tough Questions Ahead of Election
Since the $20 billion FIFA Forward Enterprise project was revealed on July 28, the FIFA leader hasn’t taken public questions. So, when Sky News reporter James Matthews confronted him in Punta Cana, Infantino evaded the questions. Matthews asked if he had betrayed the sport and should resign. Infantino’s reply? “Thank you so much” and some quips about both men being bald. Real presidential stuff, right? This whole saga unfolds as Infantino gears up for re-election. He’s aiming for a fourth and final term through 2031 at the FIFA election congress next March in Rabat, Morocco. The deadline for would-be candidates to enter the race is November 18. Caribbean member federations are being eyed as potential Infantino supporters, perhaps to pull them away from their CONCACAF leadership. The South American body CONMEBOL has already thrown its weight behind Infantino, seeing him as their best shot at hosting more games if the 2030 World Cup expands from 48 teams to 64. It looks like the fight for FIFA’s future is just getting started, and Infantino is not backing down, or answering any tough questions, for that matter.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Bleacher Report.
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