If you think your travel schedule is busy, think again. Gianni Infantino, the FIFA president, makes frequent flyers look like homebodies. From World Cup draws in Washington DC to NFL playoff games and AFCON finals, the 55-year-old is constantly on the move.
Just last week, Infantino was rubbing shoulders with world leaders at Davos. He attended receptions, spoke at events, and watched Donald Trump deliver a speech. The FIFA boss has formed close ties with the U.S. president, which could have interesting implications as the 2026 World Cup approaches.
Here's something wild: Infantino has nearly four million Instagram followers. That's more than most Premier League clubs. Only Arsenal, Villa, Chelsea, Liverpool, City, United, Spurs, and West Ham beat him on the platform.
Compare that to other sports leaders like NFL commissioner Roger Goodell or UEFA's Aleksander Ceferin, who don't even have public Instagram accounts. Infantino is clearly playing a different game when it comes to public visibility.
A December to Remember
Let's rewind to December. After the unique World Cup draw that featured Trump receiving the FIFA Peace Prize and ended with the Village People performing YMCA, Infantino was off again. First stop: Switzerland for an Olympic Summit meeting with new IOC president Kirsty Coventry.
Then it was straight to Doha, Qatar. The 2022 World Cup hosts rolled out the red carpet for several FIFA events. Infantino attended the FIFA Best awards, council meetings, and even played in a friendly football match himself.
He met with legends like Bafetimbi Gomis and Alexandre Pato at the Club Management Summit. He watched PSG beat Flamengo in the Intercontinental Cup. The man barely stopped for breath.
From Qatar, Infantino headed to Morocco and then Rwanda, where he met President Paul Kagame. FIFA's growing presence in Rwanda is no accident. They opened a development office there in 2021 and held their 2023 Congress in Kigali, where Infantino was re-elected unopposed until 2027.
Vegas, Boston, and Back to Africa
The new year brought no slowdown. Infantino hit Dubai for a World Sports Summit, where FIFA signed a deal to host their renamed awards ceremony annually starting in 2026. He even found time to meet tennis star Jannik Sinner.
Then came AFCON matches in Morocco, followed by Las Vegas for a tech summit with FIFA partner Lenovo. From there, it was Boston to watch the Patriots playoff game with owner Robert Kraft, a key figure in the U.S. World Cup bid.
Kraft's Gillette Stadium will host seven World Cup matches this summer. These relationships matter when FIFA is organizing the biggest tournament in soccer history across three countries.
For punters keeping track, Infantino's travel schedule tells you where FIFA's priorities lie. Heavy focus on Africa suggests more investment there. Strong U.S. ties mean the 2026 World Cup will be massive. The growing commercial partnerships show FIFA's money-making machine is firing on all cylinders.
The AFCON final between Senegal and Morocco on January 18 was Infantino's latest appearance. With the men's World Cup less than five months away, expect to see plenty more of the FIFA president on your screen. The man who loves the big stage will have the biggest stage of all come June.
