England intensifies pressure on Infantino

Debbie Hewitt, president of the English Football Federation (FA) and vice-president of FIFA, has addressed a letter to the president of FIFA, Gianni Infantino, requesting the release of information related to his withdrawn plan to sell a stake in the World Cup to private investors, as well as the lifting of the American striker’s suspension Folarin Balogun so that he could play in the round of 16 of the 2026 World Cup.

According to The Times newspaper, Hewitt sent the letter this week to Infantino and the general secretary of FIFA, Mattias Grafstrom, requesting an independent review of the aforementioned project. The letter makes accusations of governance failures and a deterioration in the internal culture at world football’s governing body.

This request increases the pressure that Infantino has been under since he presented a proposal to privatize the competitions organized by FIFA, including the World Cup. The frustrated project sparked strong opposition with UEFA, the Asian Football Confederation and CONCACAF as the main football bodies demanding changes at the top of FIFA.

Balogun was given a one-match suspension at the 2026 World Cup after receiving a red card in the United States’ 2-0 victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina in the round of 32, a sanction that would have prevented him from playing in the round of 16 match against Belgium.

This led to the president of the United States, Donald Trump, to contact Infantino to urge him to review the punishment, which resulted in the agency suspending the sanction for a year.

Infantino should make all documents available to Hewitt before the next FIFA Council meeting, which will take place on October 15.