Infantino Told 'Not Fit' to Lead FIFA Without FFE Documents — SkimNews
Get the Sports newsletter
Daily sports — scores, transfers, the storylines from the leagues you actually follow. Free.
- Gianni Infantino apologized to the FIFA Council for the FFE proposal's botched communication but declined media questions, releasing a video statement instead and promising written answers 'in due course.'
- Debbie Hewitt, FA chair and FIFA vice-president, said Infantino is 'not fit to be FIFA president' unless he releases the FFE papers, telling the BBC the Council got 'no answers' despite 'the most frank' meeting she's experienced.
- UEFA has prepared criminal legal proceedings against Infantino and filed claims in three US courts demanding all FFE documents be released, with Hewitt saying those papers are 'crucial' to deciding if criminal action is needed.
- Folarin Balogun's suspended red-card ban — which was reviewed after Donald Trump asked FIFA to reconsider — was called one of the 'biggest issues,' with FIFA's legal committee set to propose amending the disciplinary code by December.
- The Fifa Peace Prize awarded to Trump will be investigated by FIFA's social committee, which will report back in December on how it came about, who decided, and whether it should continue.
- Infantino faces re-election in March with an 18 November deadline for rival candidates; senior European figures are pushing Arsène Wenger to run, though it is unclear whether he would give up his FIFA role for the fight.
- Hewitt said 'behaviour' influencing on-pitch outcomes — citing both the Balogun case and the Peace Prize — is 'a dark day for football,' a view she said was shared by non-European Council members too.
Why it matters: With the FFE papers still withheld and criminal proceedings prepared in three US courts, Infantino's path to a third unopposed term now hinges on an 18 November deadline for a credible challenger to emerge — and UEFA's campaign for Arsène Wenger suggests that contest is finally taking shape.
Ask SkimNews
