Platini files criminal complaint against Infantino days before World Cup kicks off

Michel Platini has filed a criminal complaint in Paris against FIFA president Gianni Infantino and two former FIFA officials, accusing them of conspiring to destroy his chances of succeeding Sepp Blatter as FIFA president — a move that goes public just days before the 2026 World Cup begins in the United States, Mexico and Canada.

Platini’s legal team confirmed they are pursuing proceedings against Infantino alongside ex-FIFA legal director Marco Villiger and former audit chair Domenico Scala. The trio stand accused of malicious prosecution and influence peddling in connection with the affair that ended Platini’s career in football governance.

The former France captain and UEFA president had been the frontrunner to replace Blatter in 2016 until 2015, when Blatter was effectively charged with bribing Platini — via a payment of two million Swiss francs — to secure votes for a fourth presidential term. Both men were suspended by FIFA’s ethics committee over the so-called disloyal payment, though Swiss courts have since cleared them both. Platini and Blatter were acquitted of fraud and forgery charges by a Swiss federal criminal appeals court in September of last year.

Separately, Platini is also pursuing FIFA for financial damages in Switzerland, with his lawyers arguing the entire episode was a calculated effort to block his succession of Blatter. Infantino, who had served as UEFA general secretary under Platini, went on to win the FIFA presidency in 2016 and has held the position ever since.

The timing is acutely uncomfortable for Infantino. The complaints becoming public on the eve of the largest World Cup ever staged hands his critics fresh ammunition at a moment when global attention on FIFA is at its peak. Mirror Sport contacted FIFA regarding the allegations but had not received a response at the time of publication, with Infantino scheduled to face the media on Wednesday ahead of the tournament’s opening.

The legal action is the latest in a series of controversies to overshadow the build-up to this summer’s tournament. Iran threatened to withdraw from the competition following airstrikes that claimed the life of Ayatollah Khamenei, with Italy mooted as potential replacements and Iran’s fixtures briefly considered for relocation to Mexico before the situation evolved.

Infantino, meanwhile, has presided over significant growth in FIFA’s commercial revenues since taking office and last week topped City AM’s inaugural Football Power List — a measure of influence that the Paris complaint now casts in a more complicated light.