Fifa president Gianni Infantino has rejected claims that the organisation pushed for a biennial World Cup despite even going to the extent of saying those against the move were “afraid of change”.
The prospect of holding the World Cup every two years was first mooted early last year in a campaign fronted by former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger, who now serves as the Fifa head of football development.
Infantino said in Doha, Qatar, where the draw for the World Cup was held and where the actual tournament will be played from November to mid-December, that he was not making a U-turn and that Fifa never proposed such an idea.
The Fifa boss has come under fire for the past year, particularly in Europe, receiving fierce criticism from Europe’s football governing body UEFA and the South American federation, as well the International Olympic Committee and other international sports bodies.
The IOC’s fears stem from the fact that a biennial World Cup would take attention away from other sports.
Next year Fifa holds its elections and Infantino has indicated that he will stand for re-election for a third term. It would seem his main motivation for ditching the idea is that he does not want to upset the European and South American blocs.
Infantino, a 52-year-old Swiss-Italian lawyer, was the secretary-general of UEFA before becoming Fifa president in 2016 in the wake of the corruption scandal that brought down his predecessor, Sepp Blatter.
African countries under the Confederation of African Football (CAF) were supportive of the proposal but now it is evident that the European bloc has emerged victorious.
The Fifa.com website reports that a feasibility study released in December indicated a biennial World Cup would provide a combined additional $4.4-
billion (R64-billion) in revenue.
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