FIFA President Gianni Infantino received 1.6 million euros in undeclared compensation during 2024 from the entity organizing the 2026 World Cup, according to an investigation published by The Times and detailed by SAPO. The payments bypassed standard salary reporting and helped fund a luxury lifestyle in Miami, including a multi-thousand-dollar monthly rental for a beachfront mansion in Sunset Islands.
The 2024 Financial Discrepancies Revealed in US Tax Filings
Official FIFA financial reports submitted in Switzerland listed Infantino’s annual remuneration for 2024 at 4.274 million Swiss francs, complying with the organization’s transparency commitments established in 2016. However, tax declarations filed with the United States Internal Revenue Service by FWC2026 US Inc—the corporate entity tasked with running the North American tournament—showed an additional 1.6 million euros paid directly to the FIFA leader, as reported by A Bola. SAPO noted that these transactions were absent from the governing body’s public annual accounts.
Out of that supplementary North American payout, records indicate that over 500,000 euros were categorized under general taxable compensation. TVI reported that the funds directly facilitated the leasing of an exclusive property in Sunset Islands, situated within Miami Beach. Sources cited by the British investigation suggest that comparable or higher sums were funneled to the executive across 2025 and 2026.
,autocrop(1200:630) "Photo: A Bola")
Official Responses and FIFA Governance Explanations
Asked by British journalists to address the undocumented payments and the omission from annual accounts, FIFA officials declined to confirm the specific figures or address the discrepancies. Instead, SAPO reported that the organization pointed to its compensation subcommittee, stating that the president’s salary and contractual benefits are determined entirely by that internal body and reported to U.S. authorities according to local declaration mandates.
The disclosures compound executive pressures surrounding the Swiss administrator. O Globo and Goal.com reported that the Norwegian Football Federation filed formal complaints with FIFA’s Ethics Committee and the Governance, Audit, and Compliance Committee. Those filings challenge separate policy initiatives, including an aborted plan to sell private equity stakes in the World Cup to private investors through a venture involving associates of American political figures, alongside governance decisions surrounding tournament disciplinary actions.
Private Equity Ventures and Political Interventions
Discussions among critics also center on three specific issues: Infantino’s aborted plan to open the World Cup to private investors, the lifting of the suspension of American star Folarin Balogun at the 2026 World Cup following an intervention by Donald Trump, and FIFA’s award of the so-called Peace Prize to the U.S. president. The risk capital firm of Josh Kushner, the brother of Jared Kushner who is the son-in-law of Trump, was reportedly set to be the primary investor in the ill-fated Fifa Forward Enterprise (FFE) project. Infantino’s plan, launched right after this year’s massive World Cup co-organized by Canada, Mexico, and the United States in July, would have allowed private investors to acquire stakes in a company created under the FFE initiative.
Timeline of Governing Body Scrutiny and Upcoming Votes
As the controversy widens ahead of the next administrative gatherings, the calendar dictates several critical checkpoints for the global governing body:
- October 15, 2026: The FIFA Council gathers in Zurich, Switzerland, where Infantino is scheduled to preside over executive sessions amidst rising governance challenges.
- November 18, 2026: The formal deadline closes for candidates to register their bids for the presidency.
- March 2027: The elective Congress convenes in Rabat, Morocco, where Infantino seeks a fourth and final term against the backdrop of ongoing financial and ethical inquiries.
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