Overview
- Infantino flew from Miami to Doha on Monday to attend the funeral of Qatar’s former Emir, travelling on a private jet and appearing among mourners, a move that renewed scrutiny of his ties to Qatar.
- The Athletic reported that Host Broadcast Services, which supplies FIFA’s world feed, is contractually required to deliver a ‘dignitary shot’ each half that highlights top officials and VVIPs, explaining why Infantino has frequently appeared on broadcasts.
- FIFA said showing officials is standard practice and denied directing specific shots of the president, while critics say the mandated feed centralises control of Infantino’s visibility.
- The disciplinary reversal that cleared US striker Folarin Balogun followed a phone call between President Donald Trump and Infantino and a subsequent decision by the FIFA disciplinary chair, prompting UEFA to condemn the action as crossing a red line.
- European federations are now exploring alternative presidential candidates and civil‑society group FairSquare has lodged a complaint with the IOC, increasing pressure on Infantino as he seeks a third term and faces questions about travel, broadcast control and governance.