Gianni Infantino has told his critics to “meditate, pray or watch a football match” instead of “spreading hate and false rumours” about him and the World Cup, in a furious Instagram tirade that experts say echoes Donald Trump’s political style.
The Fifa president posted a 15-slide message on his personal Instagram account – reposted to the governing body’s eight million followers – in which he attacked “those behind their pens and papers, behind their screens” and insisted the tournament was the “greatest event on earth” with “100% safety and security, only joy and happiness”.
“Infantino attacks World Cup critics, claims perfect safety amid Iran visa chaos, racism probe.”
“We experienced no violence, no incidents,” Infantino wrote. He added that Iran, one of the most controversial participants, “entered the United States without incident or conflict” after Fifa “worked tirelessly to unite two countries at war”.
But his rosy picture contradicts a litany of documented problems. Iran’s head coach Amir Ghalenoei said his team were the “most oppressed” at the World Cup. “Integral” members of their backroom staff were denied visas, fans had ticket allocations revoked, and the team was forced to move its training base from Tucson, Arizona to Tijuana, Mexico after a multitude of logistical issues. Once in the US, Iran faced restrictions on movements between training and matches.
Nor were Iran’s troubles unique. Fans from Haiti, Senegal and Ivory Coast were hit by travel bans imposed by the Trump administration. Somali referee Omar Artan was denied entry to the US despite holding a diplomatic passport and a single-entry visa, because of his “association with suspected members of terror organisations”.
Infantino dismissed these episodes: “You mentioned the few people denied visas and overlooked the millions who were approved.” He doubled down on safety, claiming “zero incidents, zero violence, just joy”.
Yet Fifa is now investigating Argentina’s players and staff after they were involved in altercations with Spain following the World Cup final. The governing body is also probing allegations of racist abuse towards American players.
Will Castle, writing in The Independent, described Infantino’s rant as “an attack on those who have tried to hold him to account. An attempt to distort reality.” The Fifa president offered a sarcastic apology: “Sorry that the matches are now over and sorry that you missed all that joy and togetherness. Sorry that you were so consumed by hate and criticism.”
With Fifa facing multiple investigations and a growing credibility gap, Infantino’s call to “meditate, pray or watch a football match” seems unlikely to silence his detractors.