November 6: The sense of entitlement that has been a hallmark of FIFA president Gianni Infantino’s leadership has extended to his family who have been accorded VIP treatment traveling through Miami airport more than 100 times.
According to a report in the New York Post, his wife and daughters appear 125 times in protocol records at Miami International Airport since January 2024. There are 95 records, many listing more than one family member.
The New York Post says it has seen internal airport correspondence showing FIFA requesting VIP protocols for their daughters Alessia, Sabrina and Dahlia for a trip to Doha “with their dogs”.
VIP protocol privileges normally reserved for senior diplomats. The New York Post cites several protocol and government experts who say the VIP requests represent an “abuse of power” and are not intended for the families of designated VIPs unless they are traveling as part of the VIP’s entourage.
In 63 of the records seen by the New York Post, there is no entry for Gianni on those dates. His wife, Leena Infantino, is named 46 times, almost twice as many as her husband, who appears 24 times. Gianni’s preferred method of travel is by private jet.
FIFA’s code prohibits officials from using their work “for private purposes or benefits”.
According to a sports lawyer, Infantino asking FIFA to arrange his family’s private trip would constitute an abuse of position and “misuse of FIFA resources for his own private purpose”.
A FIFA spokesman said: “The requests for port courtesy were made at Miami International Airport (MIA), following the advice of a former adviser to the FIFA president. Port courtesy is provided at no cost to the FIFA president given his position as head of an association or NGO. Mr Infantino’s family members are also entitled to request these services with the MIA’s own ‘Port’s Courtesy’ and, in any case, they are also provided free of charge, as the case may be, at MIA’s discretion.”
It’s been another bad week for the under-fire FIFA president who was accused of breaking the law in order to get a visa for his undocumented mistress; was forced to allow access to FFE documents; and saw his biggest ally, Donald Trump, beaten by Democrats in the US midterm elections, a result that could open up a possible subpoena to testify before the House Judiciary Committee.
Contact the writer of this story at (email protected)