Insiders paint Infantino power turn as FIFA game swells

A March 20, 2025 election gathering in southern Greece became the stage for conflicting accounts about FIFA president Gianni Infantino’s vote—while former football figures and human rights advocates describe a leader they say has shifted from “pleasant” to som

The Ionian Sea was in full view on March 20, 2025 at Costa Navarino in southern Greece—an elegant setting for a high-stakes decision inside football’s political machinery.

Gianni Infantino. FIFA’s president and a fixture among the powerful. was there because the International Olympic Committee membership was set to elect the next leader. Seven candidates were in the running. and 97 votes were scheduled to be cast. with the detailed tick-by-tick secrecy usually kept behind closed doors. Still, as the whispers traveled, one question hung over the gathering: which direction would Infantino lean?.

Three prominent sources contacted by Daily Mail Sport said the shared expectation in Greece was that Infantino sided with the Spanish candidate Juan Antonio Samaranch Jr. His camp, they said, felt confident. But figures close to Lord Sebastian Coe heard something else. They were given reason to believe Infantino’s vote would be theirs. When the voting happened, neither man won—but, 15 months later, the two camps still reportedly believe Infantino supported them.

FIFA did not respond to a request for clarity. The mystery itself might be familiar to anyone who’s watched the opaque side of global sport for years. What makes the story hard to ignore is what it taps into: the way people who have dealt with Infantino describe his evolution. and the sense—still debated inside FIFA’s own structures—that his time in power has carried consequences far beyond ballot boxes.

Infantino has been FIFA president since 2016 and is set to stand for re-election next year. He was elected on February 26. 2016. tasked with “cleaning the wreckage” left behind by institutional corruption tied to his predecessor. Sepp Blatter. The Swiss-born lawyer rose through the ranks at UEFA. serving as general secretary. but FIFA’s top job was often described as coming from a narrow door. His run gained momentum only after Michel Platini was pulled into the same investigations as Blatter, opening space for Infantino.

Greg Dyke—who was the FA chairman during Blatter’s fall and for Infantino’s early period—recalled that his first impression was positive. Dyke said: “I had dinner with Platini the week before the whole thing blew up. and he genuinely thought he was there.” He added: “I don’t quite know where the idea came from for Infantino to run. but my first impressions were that I liked him. He was a guy you could sit down with and have a chat. I never thought he was particularly political and thought he would bring a positive change.”.

Dyke’s FA voted for Infantino.

Patrick Nally. 79. who is described in the report as the founding father of modern sports marketing and a king-maker connected to elite sport’s power levers since the 1990s. met Infantino in 2010. Nally’s recollection. like Dyke’s. described a different man at the start: “He was pleasant and unassuming.” He said: “He didn’t strike me as an incredibly political or ambitious individual. which clearly he seems to have become.”.

The report pairs those early memories with a series of moments that critics say point toward a different temperament now—one that hungers for visibility and, in their view, lacks empathy.

Infantino has been instrumental in expanding the World Cup from 32 nations to 48. Critics connect that growth to a broader reshaping of football on his watch, including the Club World Cup, where his name is said to be engraved into the trophy twice.

Celebrity access is another thread. The report says Infantino sends birthday messages to Cristiano Ronaldo. It also cites criticism after Infantino posed for selfies close to Pele’s coffin in 2023. For Ramon Vega—an ex-Tottenham defender who capped 23 times by Switzerland and who initially campaigned for the FIFA role after Blatter’s demise—the criticism is tied less to showmanship for its own sake and more to what it reflects about how Infantino carries power.

Vega said: “To me. it looks like a muppet show.” He added that the scenes in Vancouver and the handshake incident between senior executives of the Israeli and Palestinian football associations showed. in his words. “a man with zero empathy and a superiority complex that degraded the position of FIFA president.”.

That Vancouver episode is pinned to April, during FIFA’s congress. The report says Infantino attempted to coax a handshake on stage. and the senior executives of the Israeli and Palestinian football associations refused. Palestinian FA president Jibril Rajoub then walked away in audible displeasure from an “excruciating scene.”.

The same report links Infantino’s willingness to push past political neutrality lines to his interactions with leaders and regimes. It notes that his grins of fealty to Donald Trump are described as echoing Vladimir Putin and the ruling family of Qatar. but “growing more extreme with each World Cup cycle.”.

A flashpoint came during the February US President’s Board of Peace meeting, when Infantino wore a red Trump hat. The report says the IOC investigated a potential breach of principles around political neutrality. As a member of the IOC. it says he might have been expected to be more attentive to sensitivities because the Winter Olympics were underway at the time. Infantino was cleared, but IOC president Kirsty Coventry was said to be unimpressed. A seasoned Olympics source is quoted in the report describing their relationship as “not close.”.

From the US to Qatar, the criticisms become more pointed. The report describes Infantino cozying up to the ruling family of Qatar ahead of the 2022 World Cup and says the migrant workers who built Qatari stadiums are among those believed to be best placed to judge the reality of the situation.

It also points to an incident involving visas—saying Iranian football delegation members were reportedly denied visas to the United States this month.

Another institutional clash is linked to the IOC: the report ties Infantino’s outreach style and political optics to the IOC’s concern over neutrality.

Then there are moments aimed inward, at football itself. The report argues that the stakes around Infantino’s “good ideas” are reflected in how far the sport has been expanded and stretched.

The qualification process and group stages are described as plainly diminished by the jump from 32 nations to 48. Vega says: “The expansion will dilute the quality of play.” He adds: “This could cause massive player burnout and concerns over the welfare of the athletes.”

The report also notes that beyond the 48 nations, “entities that stand to profit from 40 extra games” have not backed the change in the way Vega and others are said to have feared. It states that the Club World Cup drew threats of strikes from players.

Looking ahead. the report says the 2030 World Cup will be spread across Africa. Europe and South America. with guaranteed qualification for at least six host nations. It also says FIFA officials insist it is highly unlikely the tournament will swell to 64 nations. despite Infantino being quoted saying in 2025 that “every idea is a good idea” when the thought of increasing to 64 was floated. The report says it remains to be seen whether Infantino will insist on a Club World Cup every two years.

For some, the expansion isn’t just about schedule—it’s about leverage. The report says the messy concoction opened a path for an Asia host to jump a queue of continents in 2034. with Saudi Arabia presented as the destination. Accusations of sportswashing and profit before sense are said to have restarted.

Where the argument tightens is in the backlash around money. The report says the “preeminent challenge” to Infantino’s philosophy of “every idea” is the immense backlash against FIFA ticket prices this summer. Vega says: “He completely lost touch with reality, prioritising financial revenue. Real fans cannot afford to go to the World Cup.”.

There are also human rights warnings attached to the next tournament. Minky Worden. director of global initiatives at Human Rights Watch. is quoted in the report with a blunt warning: “As the World Cup looms. it wouldn’t pass any human rights smell test.” She says FIFA has been unable to secure a guarantee that armed ICE enforcement officials aren’t greeting millions of fans in the US.

Worden’s specific fear is for June 13, when the report says Haitian supporters attending the match against Scotland could be at risk of being scooped up by ICE agents. FIFA is said to have not responded to a request for comment on that point.

Worden’s criticism also reaches back into Infantino’s early promise. She says she visited him at FIFA HQ in Zurich on June 20. 2016. after Infantino “kept a promise to meet in his first 100 days.” She adds: “But the evolution in 10 years shows there’s clearly no value system that says he has to do that anymore.”.

The report also says Human Rights Watch lost patience two years ago when Saudi Arabia emerged unopposed from a “curiously truncated bidding process” to land the World Cup, after which HRW cut ties.

Worden’s conclusion is that Infantino’s behaviour after Vancouver reflects a belief that he deserves extraordinary treatment. She asks: “The Pope isn’t asking for treatment like this so where would he have gotten the idea that he deserves it?” She calls it “delusional dictator behaviour.”

Vega uses the same general frame, saying: “He is only serving his own ego.”

For all the criticism, FIFA’s internal politics have remained stable. The report says Infantino was re-elected unopposed in 2019 and 2023. It also says he has been cleared to stand again in 2027 because his first term fell short of the full four years. The expectation in the report is that he will almost certainly win. It adds that only the Norwegian FA is named as a vocal dissenting voice. called out for the peace prize saga.

Financially, the report stresses a contrast. It says FIFA’s accounts showed annual revenue of $502 million a decade ago and that in 2025 it had risen to $2.66 billion. It states that in World Cup year, projections suggest $9 billion. “Everything has bloated in tandem,” the report says.

One of the central claims tying personality and power together is also tied to specific events with major leaders. Nally points to Russia as a turning point in Infantino’s mindset. He says: “All I can say is that power goes to one’s head.” He argues that Russia showed how powerful the position was. citing the Order of Friendship Medal awarded in 2019. said to have been patted onto Infantino’s chest by Putin.

Nally continues: “The fact he was given one of the highest awards he could be given by Russia (the Order of Friendship Medal, patted onto his chest by Putin in 2019), and the realisation of what he had become, the penny dropped quite quickly.”

He links the next phase to Qatar and then Saudi Arabia. suggesting that being feted by powerful families can warp reality. Nally says: “Look at Qatar. This brought Infantino into complete contact with the most powerful families in Qatar. And then through Qatar into Saudi Arabia.” He adds: “He’s allowed his personality and ego to suddenly think he is another leader of the world. He will see himself as being equal to a Trump. He will see himself as being equal to a Putin. In other words, it’s difficult when you’re being feted by these individuals for it to not have an influence. Some individuals forget the reality.”.

Nally adds: “There is no humility there at all.”

A peace prize is framed as the end-cap to the chapter. The report says Donald Trump was presented with the inaugural FIFA Peace Prize by Infantino late last year. It also notes that Infantino could not have forecast the invasion of Iran three months later. but suggests that the belief that he could gift such a prize will shape his legacy.

Vega and Worden connect the same power theme to football’s “bigger” era: bigger World Cup, bigger Club World Cup, bigger ticket prices, bigger demands on tired players, and bigger takings.

And there’s a recurring thread that runs back to Infantino’s past rhetoric and self-presentation. The report recalls that on the Qatar World Cup stage. he offered a personal statement that included: “Today. I feel Qatari. Today, I feel gay. Today, I feel disabled. Today. I feel like a migrant worker…” It contrasts the self-description with critics’ sense that the man they see now is no longer grounded in reality.

Inside FIFA’s congress in Vancouver and inside that election-at-sea-breeze in Greece, the same kind of ambiguity keeps resurfacing. Who is Infantino really loyal to—if loyalty exists at all, or if calculation simply follows opportunity?. The report’s own insistence is that. even after votes and cleared findings. the camps continue to believe they were favored.

Those close to the story say the real question is what the game has been forced to pay for in the meantime: the expansion and financial growth that FIFA points to as proof of success, and the human and sporting costs that critics say are no longer avoidable.

Today, in the report’s telling, Infantino will likely feel good about the numbers and the stability. But for those watching from outside the ballot bubble. the uneasy conclusion is that the “good ideas” weren’t a solution—just another form of momentum that carried the sport in a direction critics insist it can’t afford.

Gianni Infantino FIFA president World Cup 48 nations Club World Cup Costa Navarino IOC election Juan Antonio Samaranch Jr Lord Sebastian Coe Jibril Rajoub Kirsty Coventry Human Rights Watch ICE Haitian supporters Ramon Vega Patrick Nally Greg Dyke FIFA Peace Prize