Infantino causes chaos: three hours late at the FIFA Congress!

Infantino causes chaos: three hours late at the FIFA Congress!

FIFA President Gianni Infantino caused a stir when he arrived more than three hours late for the congress of FIFA's 211 member associations in Asunción, Paraguay. His delay coincided with a controversial trip to the Middle East, during which he attended official events in Saudi Arabia and Qatar accompanied by US President Donald Trump. Infantino sheepishly apologized for the long wait of the delegates who had been waiting for his arrival. Hundreds of representatives, including Bernd Neuendorf, the president of the DFB, had to wait patiently for the FIFA president, who was only in Brazilian airspace when the meeting was scheduled to begin.

FIFA had originally scheduled the congress to start at 9:30 a.m. local time, but the actual start delay was over three hours. Infantino justified his late arrival with “important discussions with political and business leaders” in the Middle East. The reason for the delay was given as “a small problem with our flight”. A private Qatar Airways plane took him to Paraguay after a stopover in Nigeria, but landed only an hour before the meeting was scheduled to start.

Confusion and criticism

Norway's head of the association, Lise Klaveness, expressed surprise at Infantino's absence and emphasized how important his presence was for the delegates. Critically, she noted that no official information about Infantino's calendar was provided. This led to a tense mood among the delegates in attendance as they prepared for the upcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

Infantino's absence was particularly notable as he was also unable to attend a planned dinner with Paraguayan President Santiago Peña. Peña ultimately delivered his opening speech several hours late, praising Infantino as a “personal friend and friend of Paraguay.”

The political dimension

The close relationship between Infantino, Trump and the Qatari emir has proven strategically important. These connections appear to be crucial for FIFA, especially with the upcoming World Cups in mind. Qatar hosted the Men's World Cup in 2022, while Saudi Arabia will host the 2034 World Cup. Infantino has stressed that he needs to attend political meetings to make decisions in the interests of FIFA. This participation is not only a representative task, but also aims to address important issues regarding future world championships.

Infantino reportedly planned to accompany Trump on the early stages of the tour rather than meeting with member associations. This is part of his strategy to build close relationships with political leaders. This trip was rounded off with a state banquet held on Wednesday at the Lusail Palace, where the Emir of Qatar received the delegations.

Overall, this episode highlights the challenges faced by the FIFA President while carrying out responsibilities at a political level while managing the expectations of the football community. FIFA said a council meeting planned for this week was postponed and held digitally to make clear the extent of the changes in plans.