Gianni Infantino was re-elected FIFA president by acclaim on Thursday through 2027, after suggesting the financial results under his leadership would keep an industry CEO in the job for life.
Infantino had no election opponent and won by acclaim instead of a formal vote by the congress of 211 member federations whose basic annual funding from FIFA has risen from £207,000 ($250,000) to £1.67million ($2m) since his first win in 2016.
FIFA had £3.3billion ($4bn) reserves after the World Cup in Qatar finished in December. It has conservatively forecast record revenue of at least £9.1bn ($11bn) through the men’s 2026 World Cup being hosted in North America.
Ahead of the election, FIFA had already approved plans to expand the Club World Cup to 32 teams in 2025, while Infantino opened the first ‘Pele’ stadium in Kigali after calling for all nations to name a ground after the Brazilian icon.
‘If a CEO tells the stakeholders that the products were multiplied by seven I believe that they would keep that CEO forever,’ Infantino told FIFA members. ‘They would love for this story to keep on going.
The Swiss-born president will remain at the helm of football’s governing body until 2027
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