La Liga boss accuses FIFA of ruining football and calls on Infantino to resign
La Liga president Javier Tebas has called on FIFA president Gianni Infantino to resign, accusing world soccer’s governing body of “destroying the soccer industry” by expanding international competitions at the expense of domestic leagues and clubs.
Tebas, who has repeatedly criticized FIFA for match overload and plans to expand the World Cup, said Infanta’s tenure should 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. Elections for the 2027-31 cycle are scheduled to take place in Morocco on March 18 next year.
However, Tebas admitted that Infantino continues to enjoy strong support among the national federations, making it difficult for anyone to challenge him.
“He shouldn’t stay, but the current situation means he won’t leave,” Tebas said.
“There is no opposition candidate; nobody wants to run to lose. This is the system, and it’s a system that is fundamentally flawed.”
“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 CONTROL
He also criticized Tebas FIFA’s decision to postpone the one-match suspension passed to United States forward Folarin Balogun after his red card at the World Cup. The decision came after the intervention of US President Donald Trump. Belgium beat the United States 4-1 in the round of 16.
“The suspension of the ban for an American player is an extremely serious matter. They were lucky that Belgium eliminated the USA because otherwise there could have been a case that could have cost Infantina his job,” Tebas said.
“They’ve managed to bury the whole thing since Belgium won. 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 Čeferin did not attend Sunday’s World Cup final following disagreements over disciplinary procedures, referee logistics and match operations, a Reuters source said.
TEBAS AGAINST 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 previously said the proposal could be considered in the future.
The La Liga boss said a bigger World Cup would come at the expense of domestic competitions, which he says are the backbone of the sport.
“Increasing the number of national teams makes no sense,” said Tebas.
“The football industry is not only the World Cup, which is the most important event. But not everything can revolve around the World Cup. It is the national competitions that sustain the sport.
“It destroys the football industry, one that generates tens of thousands of jobs for an event that lasts 40 days and involves only a minority of players.”
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Issued by:
Saurabh Kumar
Published on:
21 Jul 2026 22:45 IST