November 12: FIFA and its president Gianni Infantino face renewed pressure in the United States over claims that Infantino hired a housekeeper at his Miami home who worked illegally and was paid directly by FIFA.
The Guardian reports that Washington DC attorney Abed Ayoub, who works in immigration law and has served as the national executive director of the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC), filed a complaint with the US Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
The newspaper, which has seen the filing, says it is supported by a series of documents, and claims that an individual “performed domestic work exclusively for FIFA President Gianni Infantino and his wife, Leena Infantino, at their residence in Miami, while receiving compensation or benefits through a FIFA-affiliated entity,” and argues that “senior managers, acting on behalf of FIFA and in the official name of FIFA.” tax exempt status”.
Infantino is already under pressure to appear before the House Judiciary Committee, which has requested documentation about his ties to Donald Trump, including the proposed sale of FFE.
A spokesman for House Representative Jamie Raskin, who is leading the inquiry, said the committee had not requested documents related to the housekeeper but was “watching these developments closely.”
One of the worst-case scenarios for FIFA is that it could lose its tax-exempt status in the US. FIFA has 501(c)(4) status which is for organizations “established to promote the welfare of the community for charitable, educational or recreational purposes.” Most sports federations and grassroots programs have equal status in the US.
For Infantino, the personal consequences could be considerably greater under American law.
If an investigation is deemed necessary, and the IRS generally only takes the matter further when the cases are nailed down and the evidence is overwhelming, then the FIFA Council and its ethics body have their own credibility problems in terms of safeguarding the institution and allowing Infantino to remain in office.
FIFA has a poor record with US judicial authorities who in 2015 in the FIFAgate case issued more than 40 indictments against the body’s officials. Finally, FIFA managed to turn the case so that he was seen as a victim. However, this case was built around an IRS investigation that opened up a whole well of corruption, fraud and corruption within the organization.
The New York Post first reported the story of Infantino’s housekeeper on Nov. 3, saying he used his White House advisers and contacts to secure a work permit for the FIFA president’s Nicaraguan housekeeper after her legal status to work in the US was revoked.
He continued to work at Infantino’s Miami home for more than four months after his work permit was canceled in 2025.
Kristi Noem was granted a C11 parole work authorization under the Department of Homeland Security in January 2026. The humanitarian visa is usually reserved for those fleeing war or who are in danger in their own country. Nicaragua had been part of the plan, but Trump had canceled its eligibility a year earlier.
The New York Post quotes a letter on FIFA letterhead as saying: “This is to confirm that Yajarlin del Socorro Fernandez was employed by FIFA (Americas), Inc. from August 1, 2024 to October 31, 2025. Ms. Fernandez worked full-time.” It was signed by Faviana Urdaneta, business partner of FIFA People & Culture in Miami.
Although the housekeeper was said to be a full-time employee of FIFA (America) and paid by FIFA, her employment was actually at Infantino’s home. FIFA’s PR machine has denied she was its employee, but documentation and internal communications show otherwise.
The New York Post cites sources who say Infantino had ignored internal staff warnings about keeping her on the corporate payroll.
“You can’t keep paying her through us, because she will be deported,” a FIFA insider warned. “If she gets caught by ICE, we’re going to have a problem.”
FIFA released a statement saying that Infantino was (once again) the victim of a “concerted and continuous effort” to undermine him.
“Matters relating to the personal and domestic life of the FIFA president are private; however, for the avoidance of doubt, the costs of any domestic staff are borne personally by the FIFA president,” the spokesman said, adding that the New York Post report was a “gross invasion” of privacy.
The problem is that FIFA said in their own newspaper headline that the housekeeper was employed and paid by them and not by Infantino.
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