By Andrew Warshaw in Manama, Bahrain
May 11 – Fifteen months after being elected, under-fire FIFA president Gianni Infantino, supposedly the new voice of transparency and accountability, took aim at the media today for indulging in “fake news” in its criticism of his leadership.
Attempting to regain the moral high ground after a torrid few days of adverse reporting, Infantino used the 211-nation FIFA Congress here to insist – not for the first time – that FIFA’s tainted image had changed and that everything is more inclusive and fair-minded under his administration.
The reality of course is very different. Infantino himself was investigated (though cleared) by FIFA’s ethics committee soon after taking over from Sepp Blatter whilst a year ago he controversially orchestrated a new rule that undermined the independence of FIFA’s judiciary bodies.
This according to his critics, was designed to give him increased power but Infantino shrugged off accusations that he had become too autocratic despite his purge of FIFA staff and independent experts, declaring the organisation had turned over a new leaf under his control.
“The new FIFA is a democracy, it is not a dictatorship,” he asked delegates to believe. “‘Fake news, alternative facts, these terms did not exist until some time ago, they have become in vogue. There’s a lot of fake news and alternative facts about FIFA circulating, FIFA-bashing has become a national sport, especially in some countries.”
Infantino didn’t cite any specific reports but his comments came in the week when ethics judge Hans-Joachim Eckert, FIFA chief prosecutor Cornel Borbely and governance guru Miguel Maduro were all removed from their posts amid widespread criticism.
Admitting he had “ made mistakes” since coming to power, Infantino, as protocol dictates at FIFA’s annual jamboree, listed all the positive things that have been achieved in the past 12 months within the administration.
Alternating between English, French, German and Spanish, he said the reforms put in place at around the time he took over had turned FIFA into a very different body.
“We are rebuilding FIFA’s reputation after all that happened. We took over the organisation at its deepest point,” he said, adding there was no longer room for those who want to “enrich themselves by abusing football”.
But later in his at times aggressive presidential address, he couldn’t resist launching a scathing attack on those he described as “highly paid experts” who he said had miserably failed to solve FIFA’s ills.
“In the past many highly-paid experts, paid millions, have been hired by FIFA to help reform FIFA. Let me ask you, what did they do? They simply rubber stamped a sick and corrupt system.”
As if to justify his point he pointed to the $50 million FIFA has spent on governance and legal – a lot of money to get nowhere seemingly in Infantino’s view. But he also bamboozled the issue having implied at one point that it wasn’t spent for nothing. So what is it? Well, guess that depends on what point you want to make.
But who was he referring to? Borbely and Eckert? More likely, critics such as former audit and compliance chief Domenico Scala who resigned this time last year over that notorious Infantino-orchestrated motion empowering FIFA’s Council to hire and fire independent experts.
Or maybe his remarks were directed as Swiss governance professor Mark Pieth, who under Sepp Blatter’s regime proposed widespread changes to the way FIFA is run but who has consistently argued Infantino’s leadership is no more transparent or credible than that of his veteran – and now banned – predecessor.
“I will not accept any good governance lesson from those who have failed to protect football and protect FIFA. FIFA has changed now, we are a new FIFA here and we have new people. We act with facts and not with words,” said Infantino.
You can say that again.
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