As the 2026 World Cup gets underway, FIFA President Gianni Infantino faces an unprecedented ethics backlash over his open alignment with the White House, a high-profile visa scandal blocking Africa’s top referee, and vital hydration breaks being turned into TV advertisement slots.
Born in 1970 to modest Italian immigrants in the quiet Swiss town of Brig, Infantino grew up far from luxury. His mother ran a railway station newsstand, while his father worked on sleeping cars.
A multilingual lawyer by training, he quietly climbed the ranks at UEFA to become the trusted right-hand man to French football legend Michel Platini.
His big break came during the infamous 2015 “FIFAgate” corruption scandal that rocked the world of sport. When the FBI arrested top officials and sidelined Platini, Infantino launched a backroom campaign to seize the presidency. He later described Infantino as an ambitious bureaucrat who ruthlessly plotted to take his boss’s crown.
Once in power, Infantino concentrated all decision-making power and remade FIFA into a money-making machine. And expanding the tournament from 32 to 48 teams has pushed FIFA’s four-year revenue to a record 13 billion dollars
Today, opinions on his legacy are deeply split. Some see him as the master manager who successfully rebuilt FIFA from its 2015 ashes. Others view him as the ultimate symbol of corporate greed. On his social media accounts, his posts often end with the hashtag #FootballUnitesTheWorld.
But as this tournament shows, there is always another thing that unites. Money.
As ethical investigations mount, football’s ultimate businessman might find his luck is finally running out.
Watch: Cash, power, and politics—inside Gianni Infantino’s World Cup empire
by Jakub Janas
https://www.msn.com/en-xl/sports/football/watch-cash-power-and-politics-inside-gianni-infantino-s-world-cup-empire/ar-AA25R32N
As the 2026 World Cup gets underway, FIFA President Gianni Infantino faces an unprecedented ethics backlash over his open alignment with the White House, a high-profile visa scandal blocking Africa’s top referee, and vital hydration breaks being turned into TV advertisement slots.
Born in 1970 to modest Italian immigrants in the quiet Swiss town of Brig, Infantino grew up far from luxury. His mother ran a railway station newsstand, while his father worked on sleeping cars.
A multilingual lawyer by training, he quietly climbed the ranks at UEFA to become the trusted right-hand man to French football legend Michel Platini.
His big break came during the infamous 2015 “FIFAgate” corruption scandal that rocked the world of sport. When the FBI arrested top officials and sidelined Platini, Infantino launched a backroom campaign to seize the presidency. He later described Infantino as an ambitious bureaucrat who ruthlessly plotted to take his boss’s crown.
Once in power, Infantino concentrated all decision-making power and remade FIFA into a money-making machine. And expanding the tournament from 32 to 48 teams has pushed FIFA’s four-year revenue to a record 13 billion dollars
Today, opinions on his legacy are deeply split. Some see him as the master manager who successfully rebuilt FIFA from its 2015 ashes. Others view him as the ultimate symbol of corporate greed. On his social media accounts, his posts often end with the hashtag #FootballUnitesTheWorld.
But as this tournament shows, there is always another thing that unites. Money.
As ethical investigations mount, football’s ultimate businessman might find his luck is finally running out.
Gianni Infantino のような人間が FIFA の会長職に居座り続けることができるのは、彼だけが特別なわけではなく、FIFAという組織構造そのものが汚れた人間でも居座れるようにできているからだ、
そして、これはサッカー界だけの話ではなく、「国家」「権力」「制度」の問題と同じ構造を持っている。
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### ■ 1. *FIFAは民主主義のように見えて、実際は“票の構造”が歪んでいる*
FIFAでは、**人口の少ない小国も大国も1票ずつ**。
そのため、アフリカ・中東・中南米の小国を多数まとめて味方につければ、巨大な権力を握れます。
– 小国は資金・施設・大会誘致などでFIFAに依存しやすい
– 依存が生まれると、トップに逆らいにくくなる
– 結果として、トップは「票田」を維持することで権力を固定化できる
これは「弱い国家が秩序を保つ構造」とも似ています。
**制度の歪みが、個人の質よりも“票の管理”を優先させてしまう。**
—
### ■ 2. *FIFAは国家以上に透明性が低い*
国には一応、司法・議会・メディアなどのチェック機能があります。
しかしFIFAはスイス法の下にある“民間団体”で、国家ほどの監視が効きません。
– 内部文書は公開されない
– 監査は限定的
– 汚職が疑われても、内部で処理されることが多い
つまり、**「外からの光が届かない場所」では、汚れた人間ほど長く生き残る**。
これは「国家権力の不透明さ」と同じ問題の縮図です。
—
### ■ 3. *サッカー界の利害が“現状維持”を望んでしまう*
ワールドカップは巨大ビジネスで、各国協会・スポンサー・放送局が絡みます。
混乱よりも「安定した腐敗」を選ぶ方が得だと考える勢力が多い。
– 多少の疑惑があっても、金が回るなら黙認される
– 変革はリスクが大きい
– 既得権益が巨大すぎて、誰も本気で壊せない
これは、
**「悪の後にはより大きな悪が現れる現実を見るのはつらい」**
という感覚と深くつながっています。
—
### ■ 4. *“個人の腐敗”ではなく“構造の腐敗”*
Infantinoが「汚れているから残っている」のではなく、
**“汚れていても残れる構造”が先にある。**
だから、誰がトップになっても同じ力学が働きやすい。
これは、シリアの例や日本の政治とも同じで、
**個人を変えても、構造が変わらなければ結果は変わらない**。