Which part?
Sounds like Argentina is a window into the future for the US. Formerly a leading economy now a conspiracy theory, deplorable infected basket case.
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All of it? Why would FIFA need Spain to win the World Cup?
Because they had to counter the narrative that they cheated to get Messi to the final and convince the world they weren’t corrupt.
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Ahh right …
I’ve got an idea how about they didn’t do any of that and then it wouldn’t have been an issue.
Argentina weren’t very good, England massively fucked up against them.
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The USA are also famous for hitting your ice skating opponent with a stick, polluting water, bribes, waterboarding, bombing hospitals & voting in incredibly dodgy people as president.
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No idea unless for gambling.
One idea I read was the threat of a 10 year World Cup ban for the Malvinas banner against England or they lose the World Cup final.
Why would Fifa give a 10 year ban?
They’re extremely lucky that worse didn’t happen to them considering how many times they felt it was a good idea to lay hands on an American police officer.
Standing in front of Jesus, surely?
That’s a doctor I think…
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They are probably still doing it today :0)
Just going to put this one here as well
https://x.com/DaleJohnsonBBC/status/2081789943999844724?s=20
I’m sure the person who was repeatedly demeaning in backing the two reds in this tournament as clearly the correct application of the new rule will take this on board and become a better person for the experience
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I guess the Spray Tanned Piece Of Shit (STPOS) is the ultimate target for evidence gathering, but i really do hope Infantino gets his arse nailed to the wall over this…
FIFA president Gianni Infantino called to appear before Congress over Trump ties
Story by Ella Brockway
Jamie Raskin, the top Democrat on the House judiciary committee, has launched an investigation into Fifa president Gianni Infantino, seeking documents that would detail the ties between soccer’s governing body and Donald Trump and his administration.
In a Sunday letter, Raskin wrote to Infantino and called for Fifa to provide any documents and communications related to gifts, payments or benefits provided to Trump and his associates, as well as the visitor logs for Fifa’s office space in Trump Tower, which it acquired last year. The committee also requested that Infantino sit for a transcribed interview.
Infantino’s relationship with Trump came under scrutiny in the lead-up to this summer’s World Cup. In December, at the World Cup draw in Washington, Trump was awarded a newly created “Fifa peace prize” at the Kennedy Center, where renovations were allegedly “rushed” on the administration’s orders to prepare for the event. Fifa opened its office in Trump Tower in midtown Manhattan last July.
Related: Fifa president Gianni Infantino accuses critics of spreading hate at World Cup
Such scrutiny intensified during the World Cup. Trump made several calls to Infantino to lobby for a review of US striker Folarin Balogun’s controversial red-card suspension before the Americans’ last-16 match against Belgium. Fifa did reverse Balogun’s ban, but the political circus cast a pall over the US team and drew the ire of other teams and associations from around the world.
Alongside the leaders of Canada and Mexico, Trump joined Infantino for the World Cup trophy presentation after Spain beat Argentina in the final. The pair, who watched the final together in a glassed-in section of luxury seats, were met with boos from the New York New Jersey Stadium crowd when they took the field.
Raskin’s letter references the Department of Justice’s decision to “dismiss the indictments” of defendants in US government investigations into corruption in global soccer, including the 2015 prosecution of more than 20 high-level Fifa officials and sports-marketing executives.
“[Y]our election as Fifa president was supposed to mark a red-card break from a decades-long culture of corruption and scandals that dressed down world soccer’s reputation,” Raskin wrote to Infantino in the letter. “Instead, at the start of your tenure, you dismantled Fifa’s ethical guardrails and disabled the organization’s ethics committee by pushing out most of its members. This lack of transparency and oversight has since paved the way for you to ingratiate yourself with the Trump administration via tactics that a New York University law professor and one of your former ethics committeemen described as ‘legal bribery’.”
The letter also addresses Fifa’s World Cup ticketing policy, which is already the subject of investigations by several attorneys general in the United States. The use of dynamic pricing drew much criticism during the tournament, leading to massive surges and pricing out many fans from attending games.
“The most recent quid pro quo that Fifa and President Trump orchestrated is not a victimless crime. It hurts Americans. Fifa has taken its newfound favored status in the Trump administration as a sign that it may rip off its consumers, most notably, by employing illegal price-gouging and fraudulent sales tactics for the World Cup,” Raskin said in the letter.
The letter gives a deadline of 9 August to provide the requested documents and schedule the interview. Raskin does not have the power to compel Infantino to appear, given that Democrats do not hold the majority in the House, unless he garners Republican support.
Fifa’s interactions with the US government did not end with this summer’s World Cup. The US is expected to be the primary host of the Women’s World Cup in 2031, and the success of this year’s tournament has led many to speculate that the 2038 men’s World Cup could be hosted by the US. Fifa has been approached for comment.
Earlier on Monday, Infantino used a 15-part message on Instagram to denounce his critics, accusing them of spreading hate and false narratives. He touted the World Cup as a success.
More than 200 Fifa members have endorsed Infantino ahead of the presidential election in March, but some associations have stood in opposition. The Norwegian football federation is planning to submit a formal complaint to Fifa ethics investigations over Trump’s role in the reversal of Balogun’s ban.
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This line pretty much says that it’s a paper tiger exercise though, isn’t it?
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Yeah… but it is a warning shot across the bow that this event might well be re-visited should the Democrats gain the majority votes in congress
I can spot a few of the characters and moments. I do not know about some of the others.
- A lot of sombreros and spider cam at the top.
- Traffic cone (with little St Andrew’s Cross) on top of a pole.
- Gakpo curled up with emotion for his lost unborn after he scored.
- Marsch dance after Canada scored.
- Vozinha as Billy the Fish.
- Referee Felix Zwayer with cramp being helped by Australia’s Aiden O’Neill.
- Almiron as the first player being sent off for covering mouth.
- Bielsa “not a model” refused to look into the camera during photoshoot.
- Robot Haaland with his raccoon, and the Norway fan refusing to row.
- Toxic orange calling with Balogun red card.
- Infantino jet around in the GiGi plane.
- Merlin the duck in the Mexican kit.
- Beckham with a big glass of wine.
- Poch kicking water bottles.
- Lukaku, McGinn, CR7 with long neck, Bellingham, Yamal little brother wearing his brother’s number (#19), Dick Advocaat in tears with Curaçao’s debut.
- Omar Artan (Somalian referee) blocked by US Custom entering the US.
- The World Cup trophy with moments from the final.
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Hi Kav,
I was under the impression that the whole nasty business finished a couple of weeks ago. Are you implying that it has refused to die? That would be horrible!
Oh, and welcome!
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