How Gianni Infantino rose to rule football
Gianni Infantino is staying on as FIFA president despite growing pressure to step down. So who is football's most powerful man, why did UEFA and others turn against him, and how did he reassert his authority?
In 2015, a FIFA corruption scandal led to several officials being indicted, with seven arrested at a Zurich hotel. Sepp Blatter, the incumbent president, resigned shortly after. An extraordinary FIFA Congress was convened in February 2016 to elect a new president. Giovanni Vincenzo Infantino, born in Switzerland to Italian parents, had previously served as UEFA's general secretary.
Despite being an outsider, Infantino won the presidency in the second round of voting, promising to clean up FIFA and increase payments to member associations. Under his leadership, FIFA has experienced unprecedented growth in revenue, with the 2026 World Cup expected to generate over $10 billion. However, Infantino has faced criticism for controversial decisions, such as the suspension of USA forward Folarin Balogun's red-card ban and controversial handling of visa issues for traveling fans.
Following a crisis meeting, Infantino's FIFA Board of Management expressed full support for him, acknowledging past mistakes and vowing to protect FIFA's integrity and reputation.
Written by urgent.news from DW News's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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