FIFA president Gianni Infantino reported for World Cup behaviour on eve of England match
FIFA president Gianni Infantino has been reported for his World Cup behaviour
FIFA president Gianni Infantino has been reported the International Olympic Committee.(Image: (Photo by GSI/Icon Sport via Getty Images))
The Times has claimed that disciplinary committee chair Mohammad Al Kamali took the crucial decision to lift the suspension alone, despite never having been the sole decision-maker in any previously published disciplinary matters.
FIFA has provided no clarification as to why the suspension was lifted. FairSquare’s complaint identifies five clear violations of the IOC’s rules on political neutrality, alongside ‘prima facie’ evidence of two additional serious violations – including the management of the Balogun situation.
In December, FairSquare submitted a comparable complaint to FIFA’s ethics committee. FairSquare confirmed it had received acknowledgement that its complaint had been received, but has received no further updates.
Last month, the Norwegian football federation submitted a letter to FIFA’s ethics committee calling on it to examine FairSquare’s complaint. On June 29, 50 members of the European Parliament also wrote to the same committee, urging it to tackle FairSquare’s grievance.
President Donald Trump recently reacted to Folarin Balogun’s ban being uplifted(Image: AP)
Balogun addressed the situation on CBS Mornings and admitted Trump’s involvement caused a distraction for the USMNT. He said: “My initial reaction was that I was happy to be back in the team. But when I started to reflect, I knew it was going to cause a lot of controversy.
“And I could almost see within my teammates a bit of nerves because it’s something that is so unique. But the closer we got to the game, I tried to just focus as best as I could but it was difficult – a lot of outside noise and that’s hard to avoid.
“It was confusing because the team was practicing without me in the team, I’m almost just playing a supporting role to keep morale high.”
The latest FIFA debacle will likely play into UEFA’s hands, who want to pitch a candidate who can run against Infantino at the next FIFA presidential election, according to talkSPORT.
Infantino is seeking a third term, and had been hoping his re-election will be unopposed, but there is growing support for other candidates within UEFA.
UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin(Image: Harry Murphy – UEFA/UEFA via Getty Images)
UEFA President Alexander Ceferin would be the most credible candidate to succeed the FIFA chief, yet the Slovenian looks set to remain in his current post at UEFA come next spring. Ceferin reportedly has no desire to go toe-to-toe with Infantino, despite the pair having clashed on several occasions.
A number of UEFA federations, among them Belgium and Poland, would throw their weight behind PSG President Nasser Al-Khelaifi standing in the next election, however it is reported that the EFC Chairman has no interest in putting himself forward for the position.
It is understood that senior figures within Bosnian, Norwegian, Swedish, German and Spanish football have held talks over throwing their support behind Legia owner Dariusz Mioduski – with backing for him potentially growing further.
Beyond UEFA, Concacaf president Victor Montagliani has also been mooted as a possible candidate to take over from Infantino.
Confederation of African Football president Patrice Motsepe is another figure who could enter the running – and he has made no secret of his ambition to one day occupy the FIFA presidency.