September 7 – Last Friday, protests against FIFA President Gianni Infantino took to the streets with a giant billboard in Times Square, New York, calling for his removal. She made what is now a rare public appearance in Poland at the U20 Women’s World Cup on Saturday.
The fan billboard, paid for by a group of fans, was posted at 6 a.m. on the corner of Broadway and West 43rd Street.
Infantino in the space of a month went from the ubiquitous hero of the 2026 World Cup, a man who was photographed and fact-checked multiple times in live broadcasts (a FIFA stipulation for broadcast rights holders), to public enemy number one after he failed to try to sell the commercial rights to the World Cup and secure a lucrative new position at the new private equity firm.
Organizers behind the Times Square billboard said: “Gianni Infantino is not a leader, he is a distributor who tried to sell the World Cup and, even more disturbingly, the Children’s World Cup. We should all be shocked and disgusted by the latter.”
Flashing messages across the billboard included: “FIFA DESERVES A LEADER, NOT A DEALER” and “FOOTBALL CONFEDERATIONS: ELIMINATE INFANTINO.”
The ignominy may hurt Infantino, who is notoriously sensitive to all forms of media and criticism, and sent him into hiding, but he managed a rare appearance in Poland on Saturday.
In front of reporters, he refused to answer questions about his future as FIFA president and why he had refused to resign after calls from federations, football stakeholders and even government bodies over the FIFA Football Enterprise scandal. He has so far refused to call an emergency meeting of the FIFA Council to explain his FFE actions.
“There will be a lot to say, but there will be a right place and time to say it. It’s not today, it’s not here, but here and today, we’re enjoying football,” Infantino told Sky News as he arrived at the stadium where Poland faced Argentina on the opening day of the tournament on Saturday. Infantino was seen in the stands talking to the president of the Polish football federation, Cezary Kulesza.
Ten days ago Infantino was served with a legal discovery motion in the United States, subpoenaing all communications surrounding the FFE plan for possible criminal action against him and his co-conspirators. On Thursday, he hit back at the US for dismissing the discovery process, accusing UEFA of waging a “smear campaign against FIFA and its leadership”.
UEFA has not responded to Infantino’s submission, but an insider said: “If they have nothing to hide, why try to hide it?”
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