FIFA President Gianni Infantino has been accused of “repeatedly” violating his duty of neutrality in political matters.
fairsquare– an independent, London-based non-governmental organization (NGO) that promotes human rights and good governance in sport – has filed an official letter of complaint with the Ethics Committee of football’s world governing body, FIFA (International Federation of Association Football).
According to the reports of both athletic and this Frankfurter Allgemeine ZeitungThe letter is eight pages long and lists four alleged violations of FIFA guidelines. FairSquare is also calling for an investigation into the awarding of the inaugural FIFA Peace Prize to US President Donald Trump.
The charges relate to Infantino’s close ties with the US President, and are based on Article 15. fifa code of conductFor which all officers are required to remain politically neutral. They are not allowed to make any public statements or take any action that could be construed as support or opposition to political parties, governments or their programs. Violations can lead to fines and a ban on all football-related activities.
Repeated support of Trump’s policies
One of the allegations relates to last Friday’s World Cup draw. The FIFA video played during the draw apparently praised Trump’s political measures and reiterated his message that he has ended many wars around the world. Infantino emphasizes that Trump can always count on his support. Infantino had nominated Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize in early October.
On November 5, he praised Republicans at an economic meeting in Miami, saying that the President “is just implementing his announcements, so we should all support his measures because I think they look great.”
Threat to the integrity of football
While Fairsquare acknowledges that FIFA should cooperate with the US government regarding the 2026 World Cup, the letter also states: “By clearly supporting President Trump’s political agenda at home and abroad, Mr. Infantino has breached his duty in a way that poses a clear threat to the integrity and reputation of soccer and FIFA.”
The introduction of the new peace prize is also criticized.
“Giving such an award to a sitting political leader is in itself a clear breach of FIFA’s duty of neutrality,” Fairsquare wrote.
According to media reports, the FIFA Council was not involved in this decision.
DW asked FIFA and its Ethics Committee for comment on Infantino’s statements in favor of Donald Trump in relation to Article 15 of the Code of Conduct, the decision-making processes surrounding the FIFA Peace Prize, and the question of an independent, transparent investigation of the allegations.
FIFA’s response was: “We will investigate internally and get back to you [we have] Any comments.”
Edited by: Chuck Penfold.