European walkout at Fifa Congress after chief Gianni Infantino’s delayed arrival
Sign up now: Get the biggest sports news in your inbox
Fifa President Gianni Infantino addresses the Fifa Congress, in Luque, Paraguay, on May 15.
PHOTO: REUTERS
LUQUE – Fuming European delegates staged a walkout at Fifa’s Congress in Paraguay on May 15 after world football chief Gianni Infantino jetted in late for the session, following meetings in Saudi Arabia and Qatar with United States President Donald Trump.
Fifa president Infantino’s belated arrival at the global body’s annual meeting caused a delay of more than two hours.
Several representatives from European football associations – including Uefa president Aleksander Ceferin – cut short their attendance after Infantino called a recess at the event in Luque, near Asuncion.
Uefa issued a strongly worded statement following the walkout, describing the disruption caused by Infantino’s late arrival as “deeply regrettable”, accusing the Fifa chief of putting his “private political interests” ahead of the sport.
“The Fifa congress is one of the most important meetings in world football, where all the 211 nations in the world’s game gather to discuss issues that affect the sport right across the world,” the Uefa statement read.
“To have the timetable changed at the last minute for what appears to be simply to accommodate private political interests, does the game no service and appears to put its interests second. Uefa members of the Fifa Council felt the need on this occasion to make a point that the game comes first and to leave as originally scheduled.”
Infantino issued an apology in remarks to the congress before the delegates left. He blamed flight problems, but stressed the importance of attending the meetings in Qatar and Saudi Arabia, the hosts of the 2022 and 2034 World Cups respectively.
“As Fifa president, my responsibility is to make decisions in the best interests of the organisation... I felt I had to be there to represent football and all of you,” Infantino said of his visit to the Gulf.
The Fifa leader accompanied Mr Trump – whom he visited last week at the White House – on his tour of both countries.
The US will take centre stage for Fifa in the coming years, hosting the newly revamped Club World Cup in June before staging the 2026 World Cup with Canada and Mexico, with the Women’s World Cup in 2031.
The May 15 meeting wrapped with no major decisions taken.
Alejandro Dominguez, the head of South American federation Conmebol, used the occasion to comment on preparations for the 2030 World Cup.
Dominguez, who has recently pushed a controversial proposal for the tournament to be expanded from 48 to 64 teams, said he believed “no one” should be left out of the event, which marks the World Cup’s centenary.
His proposal – which would allow for more matches to be held in Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay while the bulk of games would remain in Spain, Morocco and Portugal – has met with stiff opposition in the football world.
The presidents of the ruling football bodies in Europe, Asia and Central America, the Caribbean, and North America have all spoken out against expansion.
“I’m not inviting you to change your position, but rather to reflect together on creating something worthy of history,” Dominguez said. AFP
