Infantino is re-elected FIFA president and remains in office until 2027

Gianni Infantino was re-elected president of fifa by acclamation this Thursday, during the organization’s congress held in Kigali, capital of Rwanda. sole candidate, the Swiss-Italian will serve a new term until 2027the year in which he will be able to try his last re-election, as determined by the rules of the federation, to reach the mark of 15 years in power.

“Those who love me, and I know there are many, and those who hate me, I know there are some, I love you all, especially today,” he said during the ceremony. “Being FIFA president is an incredible task, I will continue serving FIFA, serving football, serving all 211 FIFA member countries,” he concluded.

Infantino was elected in 2016 after then-president Sepp Blatter resigned amid the corruption scandal that rocked the football world that year. In 2019, during new elections, he found a scenario very similar to the current one, as he also had no opposition, and managed to extend his term.

Upon being acclaimed president once again, this Thursday, Infantino made some self-praises, praising the financial results of his administration. In the last four years, during the cycle of the last World Cup, FIFA collected US$ 7.5 billion (just under R$ 40 billion at current exchange rates).

“If a CEO of a company were to tell their shareholders that their earnings were multiplied by seven, I believe they would keep that CEO forever,” he told FIFA members. “They would love for this story to continue, but I’m only here for a four-year cycle.”

Infantino’s tenure has been marked by an ever-increasing rapprochement with Arab nations. He has a home in Qatar and strong ties to Saudi Arabian football. During last year’s World Cup, he received criticism because of human rights violations practiced by the government of the host country.

The president has also spearheaded a number of changes to the World Cup. This week, the format of the 2026 World Cup was approved, which will be jointly hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada. Now with 48 teams, the competition will start with 12 groups of four and will have 104 games, with an additional knockout phase, before the round of 16. Infantino even proposed more drastic changes, such as holding a World Cup every two years, but the idea was not well received.