Infantino defies FIFA vice president by going to youth event in Caribbean amid global soccer rift
GENEVA (AP) — Gianni Infantino defied a request by one of his FIFA vice presidents to stay away from an Under-14 soccer event in the Caribbean and instead made a rare public appearance during…
Gianni Infantino, FIFA President, attended an Under-14 soccer event in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, despite a request from his FIFA vice president, Victor Montagliani, to stay away. Montagliani, who heads CONCACAF, a continental soccer body, feared that Infantino's presence would distract from the youth tournament and negatively impact the media coverage.
Infantino's decision came after FIFA's controversial FIFA Forward Enterprise proposal, which aims to sell future World Cup profits to private investors. Montagliani, along with FIFA vice presidents Aleksander Ceferin and Sheik Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa, has been critical of Infantino's increasingly executive presidency. FIFA has not responded to Montagliani's request, but it is noted that the organization funds regional bodies like the Caribbean Football Union with up to $5 million from each World Cup cycle.
Written by urgent.news from Associated Press's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
