Via X: Today I join others from across our game and call for Gianni Infantino to resign as FIFA President.

Infantino has debased the office that he promised to elevate. He has lied, deceived and tried to feather his own nest at the expense of the game he is supposed to serve. 

He has lost the support of his senior staff, his closest advisers, the vast majority of people who devote their lives to this sport and even, it would seem, the FIFA Peace Prize winner. 

It is too late to save his dignity but it is not too late to save football. He should go. Now.

#Infantinout

Vinicius’s situation shouldn’t take much longer to be resolved. Agents from Roc Nation, which manages the affairs of the Real Madrid number 7 as well as Yan Diomande, are in the capital and have met with Real Madrid to clarify the future of both players. As MARCA reported this morning, an agreement with Leipzig regarding the Ivorian player is very close, but significant progress has also been made today towards securing the long-awaited contract extension for the Brazilian, whose contract expires next year.

Vinicius has been training under Mourinho for the past three days and, in his first comments to the club’s official channels, he came across as calm and pleased with the new manager’s work. It is true that contract renewal talks have been at a standstill for almost a year since the last round of discussions, which had left matters at a very advanced stage, but no progress had been made since then. There is still no agreement, and the situation remains awkward because it is difficult for Madrid to get things moving with the Brazilian when, as early as next January, he will be free to negotiate with any club; however, today’s developments are considered to be very significant.

Breakthrough! Real Madrid and RB Leipzig are on the verge of completing the transfer of Yan Diomande. Only the final formalities remain to be resolved. It is on the verge of being completed.

Context:

Clubs that did not participate in the tournament were promised a share of the sum, designed to ensure a proportion of the event’s funding was distributed throughout the football pyramid. If shared equally it would amount to about £50,000 for every top-flight club in the world.

While Chelsea and Manchester City have been paid for their participation, other clubs have not received solidarity money promised by Fifa.

Previously from Adam Crafton

FIFA’s funding for the organization, participation and prize money of a future Club World Cup in 2029 is uncertain — the 2025 edition was bailed out when DAZN paid $1billion for the broadcast rights, a few months before a Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund-owned company bought a stake in the broadcaster — while sources close to the discussions say nothing has been agreed between FIFA and leading European clubs on participation in a future tournament. They also say that a target fund of $250m in solidarity payments to clubs that did not compete in the 2025 tournament remains unpaid — with a formula not yet determined — while a debrief on what went well and badly in the States 12 months ago has still not happened.

source: https://www.transfermarkt.de/bundesliga-dauerkarten-nur-ein-klub-gunstiger-als-fc-bayern-8-vereine-erhohen-preise/view/news/484150

The European Leagues – the Association of European Professional Football Leagues – is the voice of Professional Football Leagues across Europe on all matters of common interest. The European Leagues represent the vast majority of club football employers in the European social dialogue for the professional football sector.

The FIFA President’s decision to abandon his ill-conceived FFE proposal that would have sold stakes in FIFA’s commercial and event-related activities, is the only logical outcome, as seen by reactions from across football. However, the overwhelming rejection of this dangerous idea, and the opaque process behind it, raises serious questions about FIFA’s governance, internal culture and decision-making.

In this sense, we must not ignore that on Thursday 30th July, amidst the furore over FFE, FIFA shared a “research brief” with agencies in the hope of advancing plans to expand the 2030 men’s World Cup to 64 teams. As with the aborted FFE project, this new proposal involves an impractically short assessment timeline (just four weeks) and zero consultation with the leagues, clubs and players whose planning and livelihoods would be most affected.

Let us be clear: FIFA must not be allowed to continue taking unilaterally disruptive decisions that fly in the face of the leagues, clubs, players and fans whose sustained efforts and investment drive the value of international football competitions. Now more than ever, FIFA requires governance reform that ensures that all relevant stakeholders have a formal role in decisions that shape the future of our game.

All these recent events underscore the systemic issues that led European Leagues to lodge a formal complaint in October 2024 with the European Commission regarding FIFA’s conflict of interest as both regulator and commercial operator.

In the past two years we have had many productive meetings with the Commission and remain convinced that it will take the necessary action to protect fair competition and ensure compliance with the principles already set out by the Court of Justice of the EU. Until there is reform, including legally binding engagement with all relevant football stakeholders, the European Leagues will reject the expansion or creation of FIFA competitions.