FIFA President Gianni Infantino has responded to criticism of the 2026 World Cup, which was held in the United States, Canada and Mexico, reports infohub.kz.
Infantino posted a 15-slide Instagram post in which he called the tournament 'the best show in the world' and vowed to defend FIFA against those 'spreading hate and false rumors.' 'To everyone who missed the opportunity to see children, adults, grandparents come together for this beautiful game, I apologize that the matches are over and you missed all that joy and unity. I'm sorry you were so consumed by hate and criticism that you missed it all. To everyone who spent time and energy on hate: meditate, pray, smile, spend time with loved ones, or watch a football match,' he wrote.
Infantino also addressed controversial disciplinary decisions at the tournament. 'In fact, controversial referee decisions or 'strange' disciplinary verdicts, such as potentially erroneous red or yellow cards or subsequent decisions not to suspend players in certain situations, are common practice and widely accepted in some of the world's biggest leagues. Interestingly, it is the countries that themselves apply such practices that criticize us for them,' he added.
The FIFA chief also noted Iran's participation in the tournament amid tensions between Tehran and Washington, praising the organization's efforts to unite the two warring countries. 'Finally, I am incredibly proud that, as FIFA president, I made even a small contribution to this show. It's an amazing feeling,' Infantino wrote.
Recall that during the 2026 World Cup, FIFA's disciplinary committee suspended the disqualification of US striker Folarin Balogun on a one-year probation, allowing him to play in the Round of 16 against Belgium despite a red card in the previous match against Bosnia and Herzegovina. After this decision, US President Donald Trump thanked the organization for 'correcting a blatant injustice.' UEFA, in turn, in an official statement accused FIFA of 'crossing all boundaries of what is permissible' in overturning the suspension. Later, Trump said he did not know how the red card worked.