The role of the president of FIFA accumulates an incredible amount of power — and typically controversy — with Gianni Infantino experiencing plenty of both in his tenure.

His rise from a legal desk in Switzerland to holding the biggest job in football and nine honourary medals from as many different countries (including Russia), has been sharp and not without its fair share of headlines.

With the 2026 World Cup producing on the pitch, the intense light of public scrutiny has never shone brighter, making him, and his decisions, more visible than ever before.

Given his recent comments, political relationships and larger overriding backlash regarding his vision for FIFA, we’ve delved into Infantino’s career and what makes him a controversial figure.

Early Life

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Born on March 23, 1970, Giovanni “Gianni” Vincenzo Infantino holds a dual Swiss and Italian citizenship and grew up supporting Inter Milan.

He was a gifted linguist, having learned seven languages, and it was a skillset that became increasingly invaluable as he charted his journey into European football.

That began with the study of law before forging a career as the legal counsel and general secretary at the International Centre for Sports Studies in Neuchâtel, before later working his way into FIFA.

UEFA Career

REUTERS/Jia Haocheng

His journey with European football’s governing body began in 2000, aged 30. Working across its legal and commercial departments allowed him to rise quickly, becoming the director of legal affairs and club licensing in 2004.

That led him to the deputy general secretary role in 2007 before being promoted to the full title in 2009, working under then-president Michel Platini.

Whilst some may recognise Infantino from Champions League draws and other media appearances, his influence ran far deeper. He helped to oversee the introduction of key policies like Financial Fair Play regulation, an expanded Euro 2024 and helped start the process of the UEFA Nations League.

This allowed him to build a strong reputation, casting his expertise over key issues that helped shape football.

FIFA Presidency

Following years of behind-the-scenes work, it wasn’t long before he eyed up the main job. Arriving into the FIFA presidency role in 2015, Infantino replaced the outgoing Sepp Blatter, whose reign collapsed under the weight of corruption scandals which allowed him to fill the vacuum before being awarded the presidency the following year.

He was later re-elected in 2019 and 2023 and is heading for potentially another run in the 2027 election. Despite his long reign, he has been criticised by those in the game — including the late Diego Maradona, who stepped down from a FIFA Legends role in 2019, citing that he was treated ‘like a dog’ by Infantino.

Interestingly, the 1986 World Cup winner drew comparisons with Blatter’s controversial reign, and claimed FIFA hadn’t changed in Infantino’s time in the role.

His next big idea? Expanding the 2030 competition to 64 teams, making it a second successive jump in size having already moved to 48 from 32. It would result in more matches, more revenue, more drama and more opportunities to advertise, something which he installed this summer with the ‘hydration breaks‘, which were frequently met with heavy boos from the crowds across 104-game competition.

Friendship With Trump & Other Political Leaders

Kevin Lamarque via Reuters

One of the biggest controversies of the 2026 World Cup has come from Infantino’s relationships with political leaders; most notably, US president Donald Trump. The world watched on in confusion as he awarded Trump the inaugural “FIFA Peace Prize” in December 2025.

Then, during the tournament, USMNT striker Folarin Balogun was sent off and set to miss the proceeding knockout tie with Belgium. But, after Trump came out and claimed that Balogun shouldn’t have been dismissed, FIFA quickly suspended the red card ruling, allowing him to play.

As a result, he is facing external heat from the International Olympic Committee (IOC), as a complaint has been lodged against him for a supposed breaching of rules on political neutrality in his dealings with President Trump — the European Parliament have also registered a complaint.

If that wasn’t enough, he faced frustrated claims that he had assisted Argentina‘s run to the final of the tournament. His comments after their victory over Cape Verde: “Tonight, I suffered with Argentina… But I’m neutral.” — raised plenty of eyebrows.

Recent developments suggest that Infantino’s presidency could be under fire as UEFA have backed a candidate to run against him at the next election, despite his aim to run unopposed. The German football federation has reportedly refused to sign a letter supporting Infantino to serve another term as FIFA President.

It seems the ongoing incidents have begun to compile a strong case for opposing figures in UEFA and other key football figures to turn their faces against Infantino as he faces the battle of his career to remain in charge of FIFA.

Lewis Hamilton’s bid to chase down Kimi Antontelli in the Formula One Driver’s Championship suffered a blow after a fifth-placed finish in Hungary.

The seven-time world champion had been on course for fourth, only to be hit with a late five-second penalty for speeding in the pit lane. That dropped him to fifth, with teammate Charles Leclerc less than five seconds behind as they took the chequered flag after 70 laps of action at the Hungaroring.

With it his third Grand Prix in a row with a five-second penalty, the Brit revealed his thoughts as the FIA explained why he was punished.

Penalties Have Cost Hamilton Dearly This Season

Despite already surpassing his points tally for the whole of last season and sitting second in the standings going into the summer break, things could have been even better for Hamilton.

After winning his first race for Ferrari in Barcelona and finishing a respectable fifth in a difficult race in Austria, Hamilton has been faced with far more setbacks over the past three races.

In his home Grand Prix at Silverstone, he jumped the start, handing him a five-second penalty which massively hurt his race. That was a race that teammate Charles Leclerc went on to win. Hamilton had to settle for third.

As the action headed to Belgium, a lap one incident where Hamilton made contact with George Russell saw the latter spin out of the race. The stewards once more handed him a five-second penalty which likely denied him another podium.

Then, in Hungary, Hamilton had qualified in second, narrowly pipped by Lando Norris to pole position. However, he was judged to have impeded Oscar Piastri as the Australian sought to begin his final lap. That led to a three-place grid penalty to start Sunday’s race.

Seeking to make amends, Hamilton started the race well, jumping up to fourth but was unable to pass Max Verstappen. He managed to undercut the Dutchman after the first round of pit stops, only for his former title rival to get back past him.

Despite that, he had looked on course for the podium only for a late virtual safety car to lead Ferrari to call him into the pits. That saw him surrender track position, as he had been running in second and dropped to fourth, and commit the penalty that cost him another spot in the final standings.

Learning of his penalty, Hamilton raged:

Why Hamilton was Punished at the Hungarian Grand Prix

Hamilton’s latest penalty came because he exceeded the pit lane speed limit by 0.1km/h.

In a short statement, the FIA explained the pit lane speed limit had been set at 80km/h for the event, while noting: “Competitors are reminded that they have the right to appeal certain decisions of the stewards.”

Some fans had suggested Ferrari should try and appeal, given the events at the Monaco Grand Prix earlier in the season. There, a host of drivers were given penalties for speeding in the pit lane – including Hamilton.

Pierre Gasly of Alpine finished on the podium on track, but was subject to two five-second penalties that dropped him to seventh. However, Alpine requested a right of review that was successful, with the penalties rescinded.

That was down to errors when it came to measuring the speeds of cars at the pit lane entrance.

However, Ferrari Team Principal, Fred Vasseur, said after the Hungarian Grand Prix that Hamilton had activated the speed limiter slightly earlier than he should have, leading to the penalty. It therefore seems unlikely there will be any appeal, leaving Hamilton looking to reset and go again as Formula 1 now heads into its summer break.

Lionel Messi has learned whether he will face a suspension along with an Argentine teammate following the 2026 World Cup.

The 39-year-old was unable to guide his country to back-to-back World Cup titles as La Albiceleste were beaten 1-0 by Spain in the final. That game was marred by controversy, as several Argentina players and staff members got physically and verbally involved with opponents.

FIFA opened an investigation into the chaos that followed the full-time whistle, which Messi stayed well clear of. The greatest footballer of all-time has instead learned whether he’ll be handed a suspension for Inter Miami once he returns from his post-World Cup holiday.

Lionel Messi to Skip MLS All-Star Game

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A rule agreed between FIFA and FIFPRO allows players at least 21 days of rest at the end of any season, including after the World Cup. It means Messi and his clubmate Rodrigo De Paul wouldn’t be able to make an appearance for Inter Miami until August.

The MLS All-Star game, where an XI made of the league’s best players takes on LIGA MX All-Stars, will be played on July 29th at Bank of America Stadium. This will be the third successive All-Star match without Messi.

He missed the 2024 match due to an injury picked up in the Copa America final, before he and Jordi Alba pulled out of the 2025 clash on the day of the fixture. The MLS responded by handing both one-game bans.

However, Messi and De Paul will avoid punishment this year due to their participation in the World Cup final. FIFPro, the global players’ union, established specific player welfare protections. A statement made by the MLS explained:

Messi and De Paul Replacements Decided

REUTERS/Sebastian Castaneda

The MLS had to put forward four replacements as Chicago Fire’s Mbekezeli Mbokazi has been replaced by Philip Zinckernagel of Chicago Fire.

Guilherme, a Houston Dynamo forward, has been drafted in. So have Yannick Bright (Inter Miami) and Andres Cubas (Vancouver Whitecaps). Sebastian Berhalter, who played for the USMNT at the World Cup, is unlikely to participate as he’s moving to Middlesbrough.