Semi-finals with aftertaste
Gianni Infantino resorts to World Cup tricks to save himself
Listen to the article (08:02 min)
July 14, 2026 | 6:49 am
First, France and Spain meet in the semi-finals of the World Cup, then Argentina and England. Particular attention is paid to this duel. Not because of the rivalry between the two countries. But for now, because of the incidents at the World Championships.
Gianni Infantino knows his job. Even if many do not want to understand how he fulfills the duties of the head of FIFA. He has almost no friends in football Europe. UEFA is angry with the autocrat. Even his predecessor Sepp Blatter, who is certainly no official saint, alternates between anger and shame at the actions of the original Swiss. This World Cup has seen Infantino take his mammoth strength to the extreme and push football closer to conspiracy theorists than ever before. This is no longer a small community of unconventional thinkers. The credibility of this tournament was torn to shreds.
After the Folarin Balogun case, everything finally ended. The anger against Infantino was so great that at least all the prominent voices in Europe demanded the overthrow of the FIFA head. The fact that Donald Trump, Switzerland’s most powerful football buddy, had an influence on the tournament crossed a red line. One that has been moving further and further back until now. Infantino has been a target for moralists for many years. But not for capitalists. And this is his great promise. With a 56-year-old man, the world association is making a fool of itself. Money rules the world. And consolidates those in power in their positions.
Easy to see through the smoke screen
Now comes a more energetic interview than ever, in which Infantino openly ponders whether the XXL World Cup will remain just a short interim era in football history. After this tournament, Infantino would like to discuss increasing the number of teams at the World Cup from 48 to 64. The tournament certainly gave him arguments for this. Extreme underdogs such as Cape Verde or the Democratic Republic of Congo were an enrichment and wrote beautiful sporting stories of a tournament that seemed so depraved in the last few meters. So incredible. So damaged.
However, the value aspect seems to be pushed aside in the mind games that the world’s most powerful football official expressed on Swiss broadcaster Blue Sport. Because the more national teams, the more money. The milk of a lactating football cow seems endless. In 2026, absurd ticket prices and the advertising Trojan horse “mandatory drink breaks” will cost her even more than before. And then, perhaps in 2030, there will be even more teams, even more games?
It’s a smokescreen that’s all too easy to see through. The promotion will likely be Infantino’s strongest argument yet in cementing his position as an autocrat and collaborator with the politically powerful. More World Cup games (128 instead of 104 this summer) means more money. More money he could give out to FIFA members. Many small countries will be happy about this. You have a powerful voice. The money can help build or expand football structures in countries. If he gets where he needs to go. Corruption is a long-standing companion of football. Not just among conspiracy theorists.
A desperate attempt to save football
This summer they found a new reproduction tool: AI-generated memes of Infantino and Lionel Messi are everywhere, driving the Internet crazy. Sometimes the powerful FIFA boss carefully carries the superstar in his arms and cheers with him, sometimes they lie in bed together with the World Cup trophy. The clips are intended to be funny, but should never be funny. This is a (desperate?) attempt to save football. That this will succeed is unlikely, impossible. Infantino can obviously do whatever he wants. And if this requires another lightning-fast expansion of the tournament, then so be it.
The list of accusations against FIFA and Argentina is long: Messi’s brutal foul in the first game (no red card), the final phase against Egypt (penalty for the North Africans, not checked by VAR), card and penalty statistics (read more about this here). And the force of the accusations was strengthened primarily by the Egyptian coach Hossam Hassan. He spoke openly about the manipulation and how they obviously really want to keep Argentina in the tournament. He was unable to provide any evidence. But the fact that Infantino had already praised Messi and sent him a “warm hug” and “congratulations” after the dramatic victory over Cape Verde was enough for those who had long dismissed the World Cup as fair play.
Argentina are now in the semi-finals. England is waiting there. Until the quarter-finals, FIFA had no idea that the Three Lions were in favour. Unlike American striker Balogun, England defender Jarell Quansah was not exempted from suspension for his red card – also a serious but unfortunate foul. With this verdict, the last sparks of hope for justice went out. But then a duel with Norway happened. And “rope gates”. Norway goalkeeper Ørjan Nyland’s shot landed at England’s Anthony Gordon, who then set up Jude Bellingham to make it 1-1. Norway coach Stale Solbakken said: “The ball just fell right in front of our bench. I didn’t notice that the rope hit, but our bench reacted immediately. It’s clear actually.”
An explosive World Championship match with a special note
Not for FIFA, which used all the technical evidence to prove it was a mistake. FIFA has rejected the theory that shaking camera images could prove the ball touched the so-called spider camera cable before it was hit. The footage taken by the Spidercam “clearly shows that the camera does not shake or move,” the company told sportschau.de. Trust FIFA’s word? Shocked. Thus, the already explosive duel between Argentina and England takes on a different note. The story would be enough to charge the game enough.
In 1982, the Argentine military junta occupied the Falkland Islands, which had been ruled by the British since 1833. The war lasted only 74 days, then the occupiers were defeated and more than 900 people died – more than twice as many Argentines as the British. The two met in the quarter-finals of the 1986 World Cup, with Argentina winning thanks to global star Diego Maradona. The “Hand of God” and the dream solo over 60 meters are part of football history. Subsequently, the fights also became heated.
In Atlanta now we are talking about reaching the finals. Gianni Infantino will definitely be at the stadium and will definitely be seen again. As always. However, contrary to media reports, there is no order for this to happen in 2022, according to the head of FIFA. In a statement quoted by The Athletic, the World Football Association rejected as “misleading” the claim that Infantino was expected to be on camera at least once during a World Cup game. According to The Athletic, an agreement is still in place between FIFA and World Cup production company HBS. It must be stipulated that the so-called “high-ranking shot”, a photograph of a high-ranking official, must be shown every half. These include, for example, heads of state, officials of associations or celebrities.
If Infantino is shown, he will definitely give the thumbs up again. Confidence in victory. It’s running.
Sources used: ntv.de, tno.