Fifa gathered in Kigali, Rwanda for its 73e Congress. Its current president, Gianni Infantino, was re-elected for a third term. It was in the presence of the president and Rwandan, Paul Kagame.
The 52-year-old leader, already renewed under the same conditions in 2019 by the delegates of the 211 member federations, could remain at the head of world football until 2031, his first three-year lease being considered incomplete.
« I love you all. If a company manager announces the increase in the dividend to employees. They will ask to continue. That’s when I arrived, the amount of the development program was 250 thousand dollars but the amount increased to ten million dollars, an increase of 7 million “reacted the boss of world football to the assistance
To its credit, the Valaisan can display a solid financial balance sheet, with an 18% increase in income and 45% in reserves over the 2019-2022 cycle compared to the previous one, which allows Fifa to further increase its subsidies to confederations and federations.
On the governance side, his last mandate was marked by a vast reform of transfers, by the institution of maternity leave for professional players as well as by more protective rules of disciplinary procedure for victims of sexual violence.
The main projects for the next few years have already been approved: starting with the passage of the men’s World Cup from 32 to 48 teams from the 2026 edition shared between the United States, Canada and Mexico, decided in 2017 and whose format was set on Tuesday March 14. By opting for a group stage with twelve groups of four teams, the tournament will jump from 64 to 104 matches, a juggernaut cut to explode ticketing revenues and entice ever more broadcasters.
To be continued
Special correspondence of
Boubacar Diakite Sarr
From Kigali
