Infantino got undisclosed $1.72M from World Cup company, filings show; FIFA denies breach
Representative image: geralt / Pixabay
US tax filings reported on 13 October 2026 show FIFA chief Gianni Infantino got $1.72M from the 2026 World Cup company in 2024; FIFA denies breaking its rules.
What Happened
FIFA president Gianni Infantino was paid $1.72 million in 2024 by FWC2026, the US company FIFA set up to run the 2026 World Cup, on top of his regular FIFA salary, according to US tax filings reported on Tuesday, 13 October 2026. The payment appears on FWC2026's IRS Form 990 for the 2024 tax year but was not shown in FIFA's own 2024 annual financial report, the reports said. FIFA has denied any wrongdoing. It said it "does not pay a second salary to its president" and that it "complies with all reporting requirements relating to compensation".
Key Facts
- FWC2026, the non-profit entity FIFA created to stage the 2026 World Cup in the United States, listed $1.72 million in compensation for Infantino in its filing for 2024.
- Infantino's regular FIFA pay and benefits for 2024 were reported at about $4.86 million.
- FIFA's statutes (Article 43) say the individual compensation of the president, Council members and secretary general shall be made public.
- Reports said Infantino may also have received similar or larger payments from FWC2026 in 2025 and 2026; those filings are not yet public.
- A FIFA spokesperson said the body "fully complies with all reporting requirements and strongly rejects any suggestion there has been a violation of FIFA's statutes".
- FIFA said the president's pay is set by an independent compensation sub-committee, chaired by Swiss banker Bruno Chiomento, whose members include India's Mukul Mudgal.
Why It Matters
The issue is not whether a FIFA president should be paid, but whether football's governing body is open about how much. Publishing what the president earns is meant to let member associations and the public see how the organisation's leadership is rewarded. If a significant payment sat in a separate US company's tax filing instead of FIFA's own annual report, critics will argue that the spirit of that rule was not met, even if FIFA maintains it followed the letter of its rules.
Miguel Maduro, a former chair of FIFA's governance committee, said non-disclosure of such a payment could be a breach of the organisation's rules. FIFA's answer is that its accounts are independently audited and that pay decisions are made by an independent sub-committee, not by the president. The two positions turn on a narrow question: whether money paid by a FIFA-controlled entity counts as compensation that FIFA itself must publish.
The report comes at a sensitive time for Infantino. The 2026 World Cup, staged across the United States, Canada and Mexico, was the biggest and most commercially ambitious in the tournament's history, and he has faced criticism this year over a plan, later dropped, to sell a stake in the World Cup to private investors. Questions about his pay will add to scrutiny from national associations, players' unions and fan groups who want more say in how FIFA's revenue is shared.
| | Item | Figure | |
|---|---|
| | Payment from FWC2026 (2024) | $1.72 million | |
| | Regular FIFA pay and benefits (2024) | About $4.86 million | |
| | Rule at issue | Article 43, FIFA statutes | |
| | FIFA's position | No second salary; all reporting rules met | |
Impact
Short-term: Pressure is likely to grow on FIFA to publish full details of any payments to Infantino from World Cup-related companies for 2024, 2025 and 2026.
Long-term: The case may push member associations to demand tighter disclosure rules covering FIFA subsidiaries, not only FIFA itself.
Who is affected: FIFA and its member associations, including the All India Football Federation, World Cup host nations, sponsors, and fans who fund the game through tickets and broadcasts.
Key Takeaway
US tax filings reported on 13 October 2026 show FIFA president Gianni Infantino received $1.72 million from the 2026 World Cup company in 2024 beyond his FIFA salary, a payment FIFA says it was not required to report separately.
Questions and Answers
What payment did Gianni Infantino receive?
According to US tax filings reported on 13 October 2026, FWC2026, the company FIFA created to run the 2026 World Cup, paid him $1.72 million in 2024, in addition to his regular FIFA pay of about $4.86 million.
Why is the payment controversial?
FIFA's statutes say the president's individual compensation must be made public, and the reports say this payment was not shown in FIFA's 2024 annual financial report.
What has FIFA said?
FIFA said it does not pay a second salary to its president, complies with all reporting requirements, and strongly rejects any suggestion it broke its statutes. It said the president's pay is set by an independent sub-committee.
Is there an Indian link to the story?
Yes. FIFA's three-member compensation sub-committee, which decides the president's pay, includes India's Mukul Mudgal.
Disclaimer: Prepared by the Peepals newsroom from publicly available sources with AI assistance. Information is accurate to the best of our knowledge at the time of publication and may change. Images may be representative. Not professional advice. Report an error via our contact page.
Sourced and fact-checked by the Peepals Global Editorial Team
Reported, fact-checked and published by the Peepals Global Editorial Team.
