Gianni Infantino: ‘I will win’ Friday’s FIFA presidency battle

Gianni Infantino says he will win Friday’s FIFA election, and that he is the only candidate who can offer the genuine reform required to restore world football’s credibility. As he embarked on the penultimate day of campaigning, the UEFA general secretary told Sky News he is confident he has the support of enough voters to beat his main rival and bookmakers’ favourite, Sheikh Salman Bin Ebrahimn Al Khalifa of Bahrain. Sheikh Salman has faced persistent questions over his human rights and campaigning record, with allegations of misuse of funds and cash-for-votes.

I will win. I am very confident because first of all I’m a positive person, but especially because I have spent four months travelling around the world, speaking with presidents and national associations. I know what they need.

Gianni Infantino

FIFA’s executive committee has urged the national federations gathering in Zurich to back the package of proposed reforms, including term limits for the presidency, more women on the FIFA Council and new integrity checks, when they are put to congress on Friday. The candidates will meet for a final protocol briefing on Wednesday evening, before the executive committee attends a dinner at the new FIFA Museum of Football in Zurich, which opens this weekend. A celebration of FIFA’s history and the World Cup, it contains no mention of the corruption crises that have brought it to its knees.

Reforms are important and they have to pass, but the next step is to implement them and, for this reason, it is important to have a FIFA president who knows what these reforms mean and how they can be implemented in real life.

Gianni Infantino

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