"His time is up." Three words from La Liga president Javier Tebas, directed squarely at FIFA chief Gianni Infantino — and he didn't stop there.
Speaking to La Gazzetta dello Sport, Tebas called for Infantino's resignation, citing the expansion of international competitions, the proposed bloating of the 2030 World Cup from 48 to 64 teams, and what he sees as a governing body that has lost the plot entirely. "They are destroying the football industry, which generates tens of thousands of jobs, for an event that lasts 40 days and involves a minority of players," he said. That's not hyperbole — it's a structural argument about where the sport's actual economic engine sits. Leagues. Clubs. Domestic football, week in, week out.
CONMEBOL has formally backed the 64-team expansion for 2030, a tournament already set to span six host nations across three continents. Adding more teams to that circus doesn't make football better. It makes it longer, more diluted, and more profitable for FIFA's coffers specifically.
A Broken System With No Opposition
Tebas knows Infantino isn't going anywhere, and he's honest about why. "He has the support of the system and the federations," he said. "There's no opposition candidate, nobody wants to stand just to lose." Infantino confirmed in April he's running for a fourth term — the vote is scheduled for March 2027 in Morocco. Without a credible challenger, this is a coronation, not an election.
"I don't know what's worse, the silence or the complicity," Tebas added. "Those who stay silent are perfectly aware of the damage football is suffering." It's a pointed accusation — not just at Infantino, but at every federation president who grumbles privately and votes in favour publicly.
The criticism didn't end with expansion. Tebas tore into the hydration breaks used throughout the 2026 World Cup, which he called "a lie" — pointing out that several venues in Dallas, Los Angeles, and Atlanta had air-conditioned pitches. The breaks, he argued, were really advertising windows dressed up as player welfare. He also flagged the extended 27-minute halftime interval during the final between Spain and Argentina, which FIFA controls as it sees fit.
Fans Are Saying the Same Thing
Tebas isn't a lone voice. Football Supporters Europe — recognised by UEFA as the official fan representative body across the continent — released a statement calling FIFA "unfit to govern global football." Their list of grievances included record-high ticket prices, inflated transport costs, exclusion of global fan groups, and what they described as football being "contorted to the whim of Gianni Infantino and the Trump administration."
FSE demanded structural governance reform, specifically calling for decision-making power to be returned to the FIFA Council and Congress, with genuine consultation involving clubs, leagues, players, and supporters. Whether FIFA listens is another matter entirely.
For anyone pricing up the future of the game's biggest competitions, this matters. A 64-team World Cup and an increasingly commercial FIFA changes the competitive and scheduling landscape in ways that ripple through every domestic league in the world. Infantino's re-election in March is now a near-certainty. "He shouldn't stay, but he won't leave."
