Gianni Infantino and FIFA aren’t fit for purpose – there’s only one way to save football | Football | Sport

So much for the beautiful game, right? Gianni Infantino’s latest stunt – by which the FIFA president plans to sell off stakes in the World Cup to private investors – is the latest reminder that football’s governing body simply isn’t fit for purpose.

The writing has been on the wall for some time now. Turning a blind eye to the human rights records of states like Russia and Qatar, before cosying up to Donald Trump’s regime ahead of the 2026 World Cup.

As if the newly-created FIFA Peace Sham – erm sorry, Prize – wasn’t bad enough, Infantino has endeavoured to make sure anything Trump wanted in relation to this summer’s World Cup, he got. That included manipulating the laws of the game in the host nation’s favour to reverse Folarin Balogun’s red card. Not even the rules of the sport are considered sacrosanct in FIFA’s eyes anymore.

The horse has well and truly bolted, which is why it is not only not a surprise to hear UEFA nations are considering a World Cup boycott, but something that should be welcomed. FIFA, more importantly, the World Cup, cannot exist without the big European teams, as evidenced by the fact that six of the last eight teams at this year’s edition were all UEFA nations.

FIFA say the motive behind opening up the world’s biggest sporting event to American investors is to “increase funding per FIFA Member Association (MA) from USD 8 million to USD 20 million for the 2027-30.” In a completely unrelated and entirely coincidental turn of events, the next FIFA presidential election will also be held in 2027.

In a world where each member gets one equal vote, it’s easy to see why this would be welcomed by some of the smaller nations under FIFA’s remit. And while increased funding to developing countries should absolutely be on the agenda, this is not the way to go about things.

The World Cup isn’t Infantino’s to sell off. It’s a historic, prestigious and storied championship loved all over the world. But as long as it is under the control of the grubby FIFA president, its reputation will always be tarnished.

Which means the only two options are: A) Ousting Infantino and ushering in widespread reforms to FIFA as an organisation, or B) A breakaway governing body that operates with the best interests of the sport at heart.

Given Option A feels further away than ever before, true football fans can only cross their fingers and hope Option B becomes a reality in the not-too-distant future.