Uefa allegedly paid off Gianni Infantino’s mistress while during his time as general secretary, it has been reported.
The woman allegedly received a six figure sum from European football’s governing body after the relationship, according to a report by The Daily Telegraph, with Uefa admitting that a “departure payment” was made.
The woman had allegedly been promoted by Infantino during the relationship and given a salary of nearly £150,000, the report claims.
Infantino, who served Uefa general secretary between 2009-2016 before becoming Fifa president, “strongly” denied the allegations and that the incident ever happened.
This comes as Infantino faces a battle to remain as president of Fifa following plans his controversial plan to sell off stakes in the World Cup to private investors.
Fifa denies allegations
Fifa has said the allegations are “categorially untrue”, adding that no employee of Uefa or Fifa had ever complained about Infantino’s behaviour.
It was reported by The Daily Telegraph that Infantino promoted his alleged lover, giving her a pay rise of 30 per cent and a salary of the equivalent of around £147,000.
A FIFA spokesperson said: “Fifa president Gianni Infantino strongly denies these allegations, and they are categorically untrue.
“Any insinuation of inappropriate conduct or violation of statutes or regulations is defamatory.”
It said that no employee at Uefa and Fifa had raised a complaint over Infantino’s behaviour – “because there never was an incident where he was involved”.
It added that any actions by Fifa towards employees are approved “in accordance with all applicable regulations”.
‘A departure payment was made’
UEFA has confirmed that a “departure payment” was made to the woman along with paying her fees for an MBA at a business school.
It added that the payment was in line with its regulations at the time – which have been updated since Infantino’s departure from UEFA to “reflect those found in a modern, high-profile organisation”.
A UEFA spokesperson said: “We are aware of the allegations and can confirm a departure payment was made to the individual in question, coupled with the payment of fees for an MBA course at a local business school. The payment was in line with the regulations that existed for departing staff at the time.
“Such regulations have been tightened since 2016 and the current staff regulations – which apply to all Uefa employees at whatever level – reflect those found in a modern, high-profile organisation.”
Infantino’s precarious position
This is the latest challenge for Infantino who is facing huge backlash from football associations and fans in response to his plan to sell off stakes in the World Cup.
Infantino has since abandoned the controversial plan to set up a new commercial subsidiary, part-owned by an investment company tied to the younger brother of Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, to run Fifa’s main events.
Gianni Infantino and Donald trump at the World Cup final (Photo: Getty)The proposal would include an offer of an initial $20m (£15m) to all members, representing a major funding boost for many smaller footballing nations.
Uefa, among other crucial international football bodies, have condemned the move, with the European governing body also declaring its members would boycott all future Fifa events if the plan went ahead.
Uefa called the “secret” plan “both irresponsible and indefensible” describing the Fifa Forward Enterprise proposal as a “shabby, back room, opaque deal”.
Fifa’s president has continued to insist, however, “Our purpose has always been – and will always be – to unite and improve”. Infantino later apologised for “errors” he made with the controversial proposals.
Conmebol – the South American confederation – and the Confederation of African Football (Caf) have backed Infantino, have both backed Fifa’s president, as have Mexico and Argentina.
Concacaf, the governing body for North and Central America and the Caribbean, has called for a full review into Fifa’s leadership while Asian Football Confederation said it ”stood in solidarity with UEFA and Concacaf”.
Carlos Cordeiro, who had been serving as Infantino’s senior adviser on global strategy and governance, resigned in protest and issued a statement branding the proposal a “bad deal for football”.
Fifa’s chief operating officer, Kevin Lamour, gave weight to those claims when he issued a scathing assessment of the proposal to the Associated Press, calling it “the project of one person”.
Infantino has been working to gather support ahead of Fifa presidential elections, summoning members of the management board to Fifa’s Africa office in Rabat on Wednesday, with world football’s governing body releasing a statement of support hours later.
In another move, a “research brief” seen by The Guardian reportedly revealed plans for a consultation process to again increase the size of the World Cup, this time to 64 teams.
How could Infantino be removed?
One option would be for the 37-member Fifa Council to call an emergency meeting, which would require 19 out of 37 votes, and could convene to call for the president to resign – though Infantino, who leads the council, could refuse.
Fifa could also call an extraordinary congress of the 221 members which could be held if 43 associations request it – Uefa has 55 alone.
At the congress, 106 votes would be needed to call for a vote of no confidence.
Pressure may rise on FAs to to vote against him if commercial partners begin to pull out as happened in 2015, the year Sepp Blatter stood down.
In recent weeks, there has been extensive reporting and commentary into Infantino and the governance of the world footballing body. The latest allegation has been denied by Infantino and Fifa, but as it relates to one of the world’s most popular sports, its governing body, its finances and impact on the global game, it remains in the public interest.
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