Gianni Infantino denies affair allegation, FIFA condemns smear campaign

FIFA on Saturday slammed what it called a “concerted and ongoing effort” to weaken Gianni Infantino, denying fresh allegations that the football chief paid hush money to a former lover while running UEFA.

The attack came a day after Britain’s Sunday Times ran a front-page story alleging Infantino settled a financial claim with a woman he was linked to before becoming FIFA president in 2016. The newspaper said a payment of roughly €300,000 was made in 2019, two years after Infantino took over at FIFA. The Swiss national has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing, calling the story “false, defamatory and malicious.”

FIFA’s statement called the report part of a broader campaign to destabilize Infantino ahead of next month’s presidential election. The governing body said it would support Infantino “to the fullest extent possible,” framing the allegations as an orchestrated attempt to distract from his reforms. Infantino’s current term runs until 2027, and the election is expected to be a formality given his dominance inside FIFA’s voting blocs.

The episode matters because FIFA sits on billions in commercial revenue and wields global influence over the world’s most popular sport. Infantino has spent years centralizing power, expanding the men’s World Cup to 48 teams, and pushing FIFA’s financial reserves toward growing the game worldwide. Critics say those moves sideline governance checks, while supporters credit him with modernizing football’s finances. The timing of the story—weeks before the election—points to a power struggle within FIFA’s corridors, where factions still resist Infantino’s consolidation of authority.