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La Liga boss Tebas calls for Infantino to quit over Fifa's direction

La Liga president Javier Tebas has demanded Gianni Infantino step down as Fifa president, accusing the governing body of "destroying the football industry" through World Cup expansion, political interference, and commercial overreach.

MW
·21 Jul·2 min read
LaLiga boss says FIFA are 'destroying football industry'
LaLiga boss says FIFA are 'destroying football industry'Photograph: Wikimedia Commons

Spain won the final of this summer's tournament on Sunday, beating Argentina 1-0 in a forgettable final.

La Liga president Javier Tebas has called for Fifa president Gianni Infantino to step down, claiming the world governing body is "destroying the football industry". As Spain celebrated their World Cup win on Sunday, Tebas accused Infantino of “destroying the ­football industry” by ­prioritising the World Cup over national ­competitions. Infantino has been in power for 10 years and is expected to be elected for a fourth term next year.

Tebas went on to question Infantino's position following criticism of political interference at the World Cup from the United States President, Donald Trump. “In my opinion, yes, I think his time is up,” he added. However, he stated that the 56-year-old has the support of national federations, and claimed Fifa's election system is "rotten at its core". "There's no opposition candidate, nobody wants to stand just to lose," Tebas said. "He shouldn't stay, but the current state of affairs means he won't leave."

"These past few days here in America, I've heard many people who are against Infantino, who disagree with what he's doing," Tebas said. "They say it, but then they do nothing. I don't know what's worse, the silence or the complicity, because those who stay silent are perfectly aware of the damage football is suffering."

The decision was taken after a phone call made to Infantino by Donald Trump. "The suspension of the American player's ban was absolutely serious. They were lucky that Belgium eliminated the USA, because otherwise a case could have arisen that might have cost Infantino his job," Tebas said. "Since Belgium won, they managed to bury the matter. But these things are just the tip of the iceberg."

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