La Liga chief accuses FIFA of destroying football, calls for Infantino to resign
La Liga president Javier Tebas has called for FIFA president Gianni Infantino to step down, accusing world football’s governing body of “destroying the football industry” by expanding international competitions at the expense of domestic leagues and clubs.
Tebas, who has repeatedly criticised FIFA over fixture congestion and plans to expand the World Cup, said Infantino’s tenure should come to an end.
“In my opinion, yes, I think his time is up,” Tebas told Italian newspaper La Gazzetta dello Sport when asked if Infantino should resign.
Infantino, who has been FIFA president since 2016, announced in April that he would seek a fourth term. The election for the 2027-31 cycle is scheduled to take place in Morocco on March 18 next year.
Tebas, however, admitted that Infantino continues to enjoy strong support among national federations, making it difficult for anyone to challenge him.
“He shouldn’t stay, but the current state of affairs means he won’t leave,” Tebas said.
“There’s no opposition candidate; no one wants to run to lose. This is the system, and it’s a system that’s flawed from the ground up.
“I’ve heard a lot of people against Infantino, who don’t agree with what he’s doing. They say it, but then they don’t do anything.”
BALOGUN BAN UNDER SCRUTINY
Tebas also criticised FIFA’s decision to postpone the one-match suspension handed to the United States striker Folarin Balogun after his red card at the World Cup. The decision came after the intervention of U.S. President Donald Trump. Belgium went on to beat the United States 4-1 in the Round of 16.
“The suspension of the American player’s ban is an extremely serious matter. They were lucky that Belgium eliminated the U.S., because otherwise a case could have arisen that might have cost Infantino his job,” Tebas said.
“Since Belgium won, they managed to bury the matter. But these things are just the tip of the iceberg.”
His comments come at a time of growing tensions between FIFA and UEFA. UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin did not attend Sunday’s World Cup final following disagreements over disciplinary procedures, refereeing logistics and match operations, according to a Reuters source.
TEBAS OPPOSES WORLD CUP EXPANSION
Tebas also hit out at proposals to expand the men’s World Cup to 64 teams for the centenary edition in 2030 after CONMEBOL president Alejandro Dominguez renewed calls for a bigger tournament. Infantino has previously said the proposal could be considered in the future.
The La Liga chief said a bigger World Cup would come at the cost of domestic competitions, which he believes are the foundation of the sport.
“Increasing the number of national teams makes no sense,” Tebas said.
“The football industry isn’t just the World Cup, which is the most important event. But not everything can revolve around the World Cup. It’s the national competitions that sustain this sport.
“They’re destroying the football industry, the one that generates tens of thousands of jobs for an event that lasts 40 days and only a minority of players attends.”
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