MANAMA — Gianni Infantino slammed “fake news” surrounding FIFA in an impassioned speech to the annual congress of world football’s governing body in Bahrain Thursday.
Infantino — elected as president last year on the back of FIFA’s greatest scandal but who has been criticized for his committment to real reform — also claimed corruption could “never again” happen.
“Sadly the truth is not necessarily the truth, but it is what people believe is true,” he told a packed hall of delegates.
“Fake news, alternative facts, these terms did not until some time ago, they have become en vogue.”
He continued: “There’s a lot of fake news and alternative facts about FIFA circulating, FIFA-bashing has become a national sport, especially in some countries.”
But, alternating between English, French, German and Spanish, Infantino said his organization was now different.
“FIFA has changed now, this is a new FIFA and we are new people here and we act with facts, not with words.
“Nunca mas — never again,” Infantino added in reference to corruption once more rearing its ugly head.
He also told those who wanted to enrich themselves through football to leave FIFA.
“If there is anyone in this room or outside of this room who still thinks he can enrich himself, he can abuse football, I have one clear and strong message to tell him: leave, leave football and leave football now,” added Infantino.
His speech came after criticism earlier in the week after the FIFA Council recommended that the ethics judge who helped bring down Sepp Blatter, Hans-Joachim Eckert, and chief investigator Cornel Borbely not be re-elected by Congress.
Infantino also criticized “highly-paid experts” who did little to help reform.
“In the past, many highly-paid experts paid millions have been hired by FIFA to help reform FIFA, but what did they do? They simply rubber-stamped a wrong system.”
In a wide-ranging speech, the Swiss president also added that FIFA was now a democracy and not a dictatorship.
He said the sport had to boost women’s football and raised the prospect of a “world women’s league”, which he said was under consideration, but gave no further details
Infantino also advocated examining the issue of transfer regulations.
Earlier this week it was revealed that FIFA would investigate the world-record £89.3 million ($111 million, 105.2 million euros) transfer of Paul Pogba to Manchester United from Juventus in August 2016.
FIFA elects Skouris as head of ethics committee
Vassilios Skouris of Greece, a former president of the European Court of Justice, was elected head of FIFA’s ethics committee Thursday.
Taking over from German Hans-Joachim Eckert, who was instrumental in bringing down ex-FIFA president Sepp Blatter and UEFA chief Michel Platini, Skouris will serve a four-year mandate.
Colombia’s Maria Claudia Rojas was also elected to take over from ethics investigator Cornel Borbely.
Eckert was the judge who opened proceedings against Blatter and Platini in November 2015, after FIFA was engulfed by accusations of corruption.
He also opened the case against Jerome Valcke, Blatter’s former powerful deputy, which ended with the once all-powerful French administrator being banned from the game.
The replacement of Eckert and Borbely will likely raise eyebrows as critics have accused current FIFA president Gianni Infantino of having a personal motive to replace the pair, as an ethics investigation was launched against world football’s top powerbroker last year.
In further nominations, Finland’s Olli Rehn, former vice president of the European Commission, was elected vice president of the governance committee.
The president of that committee, former Portuguese cabinet minister Miguel Maduro, quit his job after just one year. — Agencies
