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Infantino could have stood up for the World Cup - but he said
Infantino could have stood up for the World Cup - but he said 'chill, relax'
Listening to Fifa president Gianni Infantino and you would think the controversy surrounding the 2026 World Cup in recent days had been insignificant.
"Just, you know, chill, relax," Infantino told a news conference at the Azteca Stadium on the eve of Thursday's opening match between Mexico and South Africa.
After all, it is not as though one of his referees was refused entry to the United States. Or Iraq striker Aymen Hussein was questioned for several hours at a Chicago airport before being allowed into the country.
Nor that Iran have been forced to switch their base to Mexico, their fans have had all their tickets cancelled by US authorities, and members of the delegation refused visas.
Of course, those incidents did all occur, and this was Infantino's chance to stand up for Fifa, to back Somali referee Omar Artan who had seen the pinnacle moment of his career ripped away from him.
To criticise or question, if not condemn, the US government for the way the tournament has been handled before it has begun.
It did not happen.
Africa's number one referee being turned away by immigration was just "unfortunate".
And there was a robust defence of US President Donald Trump, with Infantino claiming a World Cup that will be largely played in the United States would have been "impossible" without the 79-year-old.
Nothing to see here.
When Infantino sat down at the Azteca he knew exactly which questions would be coming his way.
How could he not?
The expulsion of Artan after an 11-hour interrogation at Miami International Airport had come just hours earlier, accused by a US official of having links to terrorists in his homeland.
"It is unfortunate what happened to the referee from Somalia," Infantino said. "But again, we don't control everything.
We try, we'll discuss, we'll speak, we'll see. Maybe sometimes it's good as well to just, you know, chill, relax.
Those words will have been of little comfort to Artan, who touched down back in the Somali capital of Mogadishu on Wednesday after seeing his World Cup dream die.
There were no words of support for the official, no regrets expressed. It was just "unfortunate".
When questioned about other visa issues, which have affected fans and team delegates too, Infantino deflected attention to the 2035 Women's World Cup - which is almost certain to be awarded to the United Kingdom.
"Would you find it normal that Fifa would dictate to the British government who to let in the country and who not to let in the country?" Infantino asked.
When England hosted the World Cup in 1966, a strikingly similar situation happened.
The UK government feared the presence of communist North Korea could cause diplomatic shockwaves and it considered denying entry.
After a letter from the Football Association warned the government that the country risked losing the World Cup, concessions were made to allow them to take part.
Indonesia, due to be hosts of the 2023 U-20 World Cup, were stripped of hosting rights after saying Israel would not be permitted entry.
Yet when the United States makes similar decisions which affect competing World Cup nations, such as Iran, Fifa says it is powerless.
"Unfortunately, our world is, you know, a very aggressive world, and security goes above everything," Infantino said. "You need to respect the decisions which are taken, and when I say to chill, I don't mean to chill and do nothing.
"We need to respect that we are not the kings of the world who can rule over governments and police forces.
We are a sports organisation. We try to do our best with the means that we have.
Iran have been granted permission to enter the US to play their three World Cup group games.
But that was only after being told they could not stay in America and would have to be based in Mexico. And they would have to go into and out of the US within 24 hours each time to play their three games.
Nothing can truly be taken for granted until they get through US immigration for their opening match against New Zealand in Los Angeles on Monday (Tuesday 02:00 BST).
But rather than question the war, or the barriers placed in the way of a competing nation, it is a triumph for Infantino.
"When people were saying it would be impossible for Iran to come to the World Cup, I promised them that they would come," Infantino said.
I don't know who else would have been able to ensure in these circumstances - which we could not influence - Iran could come and play.
Infantino turned his attention to ticket prices. Of course, there was no issue here either.
That is despite Fifa facing accusations of "artificially inflating prices" and claims that it has been "misleading fans".
"We check what we do with the best lawyers, with the best experts," Infantino insisted.
If we do something wrong, probably everyone selling tickets in North America is doing something wrong as well.
Questions about investigations over Fifa's ticket prices - launched by the attorneys general of California, New Jersey, New York and now Texas - were batted away.
Infantino dismissed the investigations as based on "three, not 3,000" complaints.
Fifa, he said, only had one chance every four years to raise money for the world.
He defended the pricing structure as "accurate" for the North American market, insisting that demand had been "unprecedented by a factor of 10 or more".
That will be of no comfort to the thousands of fans priced out of this World Cup.
Fifa has faced accusations that it has lost control of its own World Cup. That it has been unable to achieve any real, tangible concessions from a Trump government which has anti-immigration polices as the pillar of the administration.
Given the opportunity to at least question how things have been handled, Infantino instead doubled down on his support for Trump.
"I don't regret anything," Infantino said when asked about the World Cup being held by the United States.
"I have a great relationship with President Trump. I'm very happy about that.
Without his engagement and his involvement, I think it would have been impossible to organise a World Cup in the United States.
Perhaps Infantino's last comment was most telling.
"He understood immediately the magnitude of the World Cup, the impact of the World Cup, and instructed the administration to help and assist," said the Fifa president.
To be able to exchange with the president on important topics with his administration, to put everything on the table without asking for anything, is probably the key to having a positive relationship.
For Artan and all the others who have faced serious complications getting into the United States, perhaps it does not feel like they have been assisted.
Maybe Fifa and Infantino actually should have been asking for a few things.
Source: BBC
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