Gianni Infantino walked the fine line between human rights in the World Cup host country Qatar and the war in Ukraine – and finally spoke about himself. “I will stand for re-election,” said the Fifa President during the closing minutes of a remarkable football congress World Federation in Doha. There was a brief burst of applause in the capital’s conference center, and Infantino walked back to his seat with a smile. Only a short time before, the Swiss had followed clear criticism of his Qatari “brothers”, as he called them, with a rigid expression.
“Fifa must act as a role model,” demanded the head of the Norwegian association, Lise Klaveness, on the podium in the main hall. The 40-year-old clearly addressed the abuses in Qatar on human rights issues, such expressions of opinion are rare in the big FIFA world, which Infantino likes to call “family”. The 2022 World Cup, the groups of which will be drawn this Friday (6:00 p.m. CEST), was awarded in 2010 under “unacceptable circumstances and with unacceptable consequences”, said Klaveness, thus questioning whether the world association is currently acting as a role model at all .
Like the head of the organization Hassan Al-Thawadi, Infantino referred to the great progress made in Qatar, which had been sharply criticized by human rights organizations just this week. “Madam President comes to our country and has not tried to contact us and has not tried to start a dialogue,” Al-Thawadi said sharply. At the opening of the congress, Infantino repeatedly addressed government representatives from the emirate with the word “brother”, the Fifa president now has a residence in Qatar.
Progress in Qatar ‘would never have happened’ without the World Cup
There were also gifts from him: Infantino presented a blue jersey with the number 22 to Qatar’s Prime Minister Sheikh Khalid bin Khalifa bin Abdulaziz Al Thani. “This World Cup will be something very special, something incomparable,” he said. “We not only represent our country, but the entire Arab world.”
Friendships receive gifts: Infantino (right) with Qatar’s Prime Minister Al Thani
Source: AFP
The World Cup, which begins in less than eight months, will be “the best World Cup in history, the greatest show in the world,” Infantino said with the exuberance usual in the run-up to such tournaments. During the press conference, the 52-year-old added: “All the progress that was made in Qatar would never have happened without the World Cup projection screen.”
He was also certain that the tournament would be played “at the best time” of the season. The players “won’t arrive at the end of a tiring, exhausting season,” he said, “they’re at the peak of their form, their fitness.”
The finals were originally scheduled to take place in the summer months, but due to the intense heat in Qatar at the time, FIFA had moved the competition to the meteorological winter. The opening game is on November 21st, the final will be played on December 18th. The European leagues in particular therefore have to interrupt their season. After the last Bundesliga matchday before the World Cup, the German national team only has a week to prepare.
Bernd Neuendorf, who welcomed Klaveness’s speech, was a guest at the Fifa Congress for the first time as the new DFB President. “I think it’s good that this discussion is taking place here openly on stage and that these questions are being dealt with,” said the 60-year-old, who would like to see for himself in Doha. “It is now very important for me not only to always hear from the newspaper what is happening or not happening in Qatar.”
The German Football Association “do not dive on the subject,” said the DFB boss. National coach Hansi Flick will also be there for the group draw, also in the congress center, and as expected, the DFB selection is in pot two, as FIFA confirmed on Thursday. Ukraine still has the opportunity to qualify in the summer, there are three placeholders in total for draw pot four.
Infantino addressed the world situation and Russia’s attack on the neighboring country during his second speech. The corona pandemic is almost over. “What’s happening now? War,” said the Swiss. “A war with the fear of a global conflict – with these terrible events in Ukraine. But there are terrible wars and conflicts in other parts of the world too, we mustn’t forget that. Places where helpless people suffer and die.”
Infantino defends Russia’s participation in Fifa Congress
Gianni Infantino has defended Russia’s participation in the Fifa Congress in Doha. If events like the congress were not used to bring people together, one could go home straight away, said the Fifa President.
There were representatives of the Russian federation in the hall, but no one from Ukraine. The recorded video with the President of the Ukrainian association Andriy Pawelko on a square where helpers are protecting a monument with sandbags was noted by the delegates without much emotion. Wearing a protective vest, Pavelko spoke of the “horror of war.” Alexei Sorokin, head of organization for the 2018 World Cup in Russia, said after the congress: “We regret that he has these emotions. It’s difficult for them, we understand that. But I’m not here to discuss politics or military activities.”
In the traditional call for all nations, Ukraine was also announced as “present”, participation was also possible online. Infantino called on politicians from all over the world to end “conflicts and wars”. “For our children, for our future. Please engage in dialogue – even with the worst enemy,” Infantino said. He believes in “the power of football to bring people together and to overcome cultural boundaries”. The war in Ukraine left him “with a heavy heart”, said the Swiss, referring to his last European Championship as Uefa General Secretary in 2012 in Poland and Ukraine.
He also defended the decision not to shut out the Russian Football Union entirely after the attack on Ukraine. “If we don’t have opportunities like this, like this congress, to bring people together, then we can let it go and go home,” Infantino said after the assembly.
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Russian teams and athletes are largely excluded from world sports, including football. Most recently, the International Court of Arbitration for Sports rejected the Russians’ objection to the suspension of the teams by Fifa. Russia’s men’s national team was ruled out of World Cup qualifiers ahead of their play-off semi-final against Poland, meaning they will not take part in the finals in Qatar.
Infantino, meanwhile, quoted Nobel Peace Prize winner Nelson Mandela as saying “sport has the power to change the world”. He himself wants to be part of it. The successor to Joseph Blatter, who was elected for the first time in 2016, said: “Because we are all united here today and they are the member associations of Fifa, I would like to tell you first.” Infantino was re-elected in 2019 and at least did not have his ambitions for the coming year officially confirmed. A Fifa President can serve a maximum of three terms.
World Cup every two years will probably not come
In the future, however, he has expressed skepticism about the plans for a football World Cup every two years. “We came to the conclusion that it could be done. But of course there is also a lot of resistance,” he said. There has been massive opposition from Europe and South America in particular to shortening the World Cup rhythm from four to two years, so that this project has hardly seemed possible for several months. Infantino had already spoken about possible compromise solutions last October.
During the General Assembly he now emphasized: “Fifa has never proposed a World Cup every two years.” Saudi Arabia had asked the world association to conduct a feasibility study. However, Fifa had not missed any opportunity to fuel this topic with public studies, among other things.
“We have to look at what is best for the development of football,” Infantino said of the debate on the future of the fixture. “You have to see that it is of no use to anyone if you close yourself off, even if you are the biggest and richest.” A statement that was probably directed at the European representatives, among others. Numerous associations had at times considered leaving Fifa in the event that the World Cup plans had been implemented.
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