FIFA President Gianni Infantino denies claims UEFA paid off alleged lover

What the report says

FIFA President Gianni Infantino has denied allegations reported by the Daily Telegraph that UEFA made a severance payment to a woman who was said to have had a relationship with him while he was UEFA’s general secretary. A FIFA spokesman described the claims as untrue and said any suggestion of wrongdoing was defamatory. UEFA, however, said a “departure payment” was made to the employee, along with fees for an MBA course, and said this was in line with its regulations.

Al Jazeera reported that the dispute comes amid wider tensions between Infantino and European football leaders. UEFA recently said it no longer has confidence in him and has again threatened to boycott World Cups. The Norwegian Football Federation has called on Infantino to resign, while football associations in Mexico and Argentina have backed him, following earlier support from the Confederation of African Football. CONMEBOL has also expressed concern about what it described as repeated unilateral decisions made without consultation.

Infantino, a 56-year-old Italian-Swiss lawyer, served as UEFA general secretary from 2009 to 2016 before becoming FIFA president. The article said he is expected to continue his campaign for a fourth and final term in a vote scheduled for Rabat next March, with the nomination deadline set for November 18. The broader context is an ongoing power struggle within world football governance, including criticism over Infantino’s aborted plan to sell stakes in FIFA competitions to private investors.