FIFA’s swift condemnation follows a Daily Telegraph report claiming that Gianni Infantino’s alleged lover received a severance payment from UEFA after an affair that occurred when he was the organisation’s general secretary. FIFA’s spokesperson said the president “strongly denies” the accusations and that they are “categorically untrue”.
The federation described the campaign against Infantino as a “concerted and ongoing effort” to undermine FIFA and its democratic mandate, emphasising that any criticism must be backed by verifiable facts. FIFA warned that speculation and insinuation should never be presented as fact.
Infantino is also under scrutiny from UEFA and several European associations over a failed proposal for FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE). The plan would have created a new commercial arm, selling 21% of it to a private investment firm. UEFA said it lost confidence in Infantino and the Norwegian Football Federation (NFF) president Lise Klaveness called on him to resign.
France’s Confederation of African Football (CAF) and, notably, the Mexican Federation, have publicly backed Infantino. The Mexican federation broke ranks with CONCACAF, whereas Conmebol in South America echoed CAF’s stance, demanding that any removal come from a vote of all 211 FIFA member countries.
FIFA’s latest statement, delivered after a meeting in Rabat, Morocco, also acknowledged the need to protect its integrity, governance and due‑process. “FIFA welcomes legitimate scrutiny, but scrutiny is not a licence to distort facts,” the statement read. It pledged to challenge any inaccurate or misleading reporting head‑on.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino remains in office, being re‑elected by the federation’s member associations. The sports press and social media communities are buzzing with calls to verify sources, spread factual updates, and watch for any changing responses from UEFA and the European Associations. The situation is therefore urgent and evolving, reinforcing the need for live, crowdsourced verification on PulseWire.
