All posts tagged: Gianni Infantino

Iran reportedly demands assurances for World Cup – POLITICO

Iran reportedly demands assurances for World Cup – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

According to a statement from the Iranian Football Federation cited by the BBC, Iran also wants assurances that its team will receive enhanced security during the tournament and that respect for the Iranian flag and national anthem will be maintained. “All players and technical staff, especially those who served their military service in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, should be granted visas without problems,” Football Federation President Mehdi Taj told Iranian media, according to a report in the Independent. FIFA President Gianni Infantino has repeatedly stated that Iran will participate in the World Cup and play in the U.S. “because we have to unite. We have to bring people together.” The latest comments were made after the president of the Iranian Football Federation was denied entry to Canada to attend a congress on the competition. Source link

Iranian football officials leave Canada before FIFA Congress due to airport ‘insult’

Iranian football officials leave Canada before FIFA Congress due to airport ‘insult’

Published by Sam Flores

Top Iranian football officials left Canada before the start of the FIFA Congress because of the behaviour of officials during immigration checks at Toronto’s international airport, Iranian media reported Wednesday. The global football body’s gathering of member nation representatives will be held this week in Vancouver, the British Columbia city which is also hosting seven matches in the World Cup that Canada will co-host with the United States and Mexico this summer. The Iranian football federation (FFIRI) president, secretary general and deputy secretary general “returned to Turkey on the first flight due to the inappropriate behaviour of the immigration officials at the airport and the insult to one of the most honourable organs of the Iranian Armed Forces”, several outlets reported, without providing further details. In 2024, Canada designated Iran’s Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) a terror group, barring its members from entering the country.  Read moreIran ‘negotiating’ with FIFA over moving World Cup games from US to Mexico The Iranian federation’s president Mehdi Taj is a former IRGC member. The Iranian reports said the officials had …

Iran to FIFA: Kick US out of World Cup, not us

Iran to FIFA: Kick US out of World Cup, not us

Published by Sam Flores

FIFA is caught between Iran and a hard place. Tehran’s football federation has urged the world governing body to eject the U.S. from the 2026 World Cup, while America hammers Iran with missile strikes. The U.S. is co-hosting the premier football tournament this summer along with Canada and Mexico, and the U.S.-Israeli strikes that decapitated Tehran’s leadership have thrown Iran’s participation into doubt. Trump this week suggested it was not “appropriate” for the Iranian team to attend for their “own life and safety,” not long after FIFA President Gianni Infantino assured people that Trump had said it was “welcome to compete in the tournament.”  “Certainly, no one can exclude Iran’s national team from the World Cup; the only country that could be excluded is one that merely carries the title of ‘host’ yet lacks the ability to provide security for the teams participating in this global event,” the association wrote in an Instagram story addressed to Infantino. Even before the war began, Iranian football representatives didn’t attend last year’s World Cup draw in Washington D.C. over a …

Trump says Iran is ‘welcome’ to play in World Cup – POLITICO

Trump says Iran is ‘welcome’ to play in World Cup – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

Trump, along with his Israeli allies, launched a military offensive against Iran late last month. Air strikes killed the Iranian supreme leader, but have failed to topple the regime and triggered regional drone-and-missile retaliation from Tehran. The war has also fueled a spike in oil prices, sparking concern over the global economy.  “We all need an event like the FIFA World Cup to bring people together now more than ever, and I sincerely thank the President of the United States for his support, as it shows once again that Football Unites the World,” Infantino added.  Infantino, who has been head of world football’s governing body since 2016, awarded Trump the inaugural FIFA Peace Prize in December last year.  Unveiling the honor, the governing body said it would “reward individuals who have taken exceptional and extraordinary actions for peace and by doing so have united people across the world.” Source link

EU sports chief slams call by football boss to lift Russia ban – POLITICO

EU sports chief slams call by football boss to lift Russia ban – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

“Sport does not exist in a vacuum. It reflects who we are and what we choose to stand for,” Micallef said. “Letting aggressors return to global football as if nothing happened ignores real security risks and deep pain caused by the war.”  Infantino’s remarks also drew a furious response from Ukraine.   “679 Ukrainian girls and boys will never be able to play football — Russia killed them,” said Ukraine’s Foreign Affairs Minister Andrii Sybiha on social media. “And it keeps killing more while moral degenerates suggest lifting bans, despite Russia’s failure to end its war.”  Moscow, unsurprisingly, embraced Infantino’s suggestion. “We have seen these statements [by Infantino], and we welcome them,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. “It’s high time to think about this.”  The U.S. is hosting the men’s World Cup this summer together with Mexico and Canada. Even if the ban were lifted, Russia could not compete as it did not take part in the qualifying rounds.  Infantino maintains close ties with Donald Trump and in December gave him the newly created FIFA Peace Prize — widely seen as a token honor — after the American president was not …

No World Cup boycott (for now), says Germany’s football association – POLITICO

No World Cup boycott (for now), says Germany’s football association – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

“We believe in the unifying power of sport and in the global impact that a football World Cup can have. Our goal is to strengthen this positive force — not to prevent it,” it added. Over the last two weeks, German media and politicians have debated a potential boycott of the sporting event following Trump’s now-retracted threats to impose tariffs on EU countries opposing his plans to annex Greenland. The World Cup is one of Trump’s prestige projects, and the U.S. president maintains close ties to Gianni Infantino, president of the world football governing body FIFA. A boycott by heavyweight European nations would cripple the tournament. Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos amid tensions over Greenland, Infantino sought to downplay political divisions, saying: “The world stands still because the World Cup and football has really an impact on the lives, on the moods of people like [nothing] else. There is nothing anywhere close to what football does. It changes the mood not just of people, but of countries.”  Calls for a politically motivated boycott …

German football executive urges World Cup boycott to protest Trump – POLITICO

German football executive urges World Cup boycott to protest Trump – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

Göttlich also took aim at FIFA President Gianni Infantino — widely seen as a close ally of Trump — accusing football’s leadership of applying double standards. “Qatar was too political for everyone, and now we’re completely apolitical?” he said. “That really, really bothers me.” His comments add momentum to a growing debate in Europe over whether global sport can remain insulated from politics as Trump ramps up pressure on allies — from threats surrounding Greenland to U.S. military action in Venezuela — while treating the World Cup as a major soft-power trophy of his second term. Not all governments are receptive. France’s sports minister said this week there was “no desire” in Paris to boycott the tournament, which will be co-hosted by the U.S., Canada and Mexico, arguing that sport should remain separate from politics. Still, several European football leaders have already shown a willingness to wade into political disputes. The president of Norway’s football federation, Lise Klaveness, has repeatedly criticized human rights issues tied to major tournaments, while Ireland’s football association pushed to exclude …