Infantino burned in effigy as Trump links and Congress probe threaten FIFA chief's re-election bid

FIFA president Gianni Infantino has been selected as the effigy for the Edenbridge Bonfire Society’s annual celebrations in Kent, with the society citing his ‘string of decisions that have left their mark on the world of football in the wake of the World Cup’. The cartoon figure of Infantino — which incorporates the face of US President Donald Trump — was unveiled ahead of Thursday’s bonfire.

The choice reflects mounting pressure on Infantino as he approaches a re-election vote in March. Democrats on the US House Judiciary Committee launched a formal investigation in July into what they described as a ‘sustained campaign’ by FIFA and Infantino to curry favour with Trump, requesting that Infantino submit documents and appear before the Committee.

A Committee spokeswoman said in September that Infantino and FIFA’s co-operation with the investigation had been ‘woefully inadequate’. She added that FIFA had yet to hand over priority documents, including those that would show how much money FIFA had given the Trump family, and had not answered questions around the awarding of the FIFA Peace Prize or explained ‘how the Kushner-Infantino scheme to sell off the World Cup was conceived’.

The Kushner reference relates to a proposal Infantino was developing to sell stakes in a new entity, FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE), to private investors. FIFA confirmed the plan would see FFE run the commercial interests of the World Cup and other competitions, with Thrive Capital — founded by Joshua Kushner, brother of Trump son-in-law Jared Kushner — leading the investor group.

The FFE proposal was rejected by three continental confederations. UEFA, European football’s governing body, threatened to boycott FIFA tournaments unless the plan was abandoned. Infantino announced its withdrawal on August 1, but UEFA stated it had nonetheless ‘lost confidence’ in the FIFA president.

With Democrats having seized control of Congress at the US midterm elections, Infantino could now face renewed and more forceful questioning over his relationship with the Trump administration as the Congressional probe regains momentum ahead of his re-election bid.