Gianni Infantino on March 16 received the mandate to begin his second term as FIFA President during the 73rd FIFA Congress held in Kigali, Rwanda. Infantino will serve a second term as FIFA President after being re-elected unopposed to lead global football’s governing body for another four years. ALSO READ: 'Humbled and touched' - FIFA’s Infantino on re-election Infantino was first elected in an Extraordinary Congress in 2016 following the resignation of his predecessor Sepp Blatter, and retained his position unopposed three years later. His re-election in Kigali counts as his second term of office making him eligible for a third and final term, come 2027. The global football’s governing body statutes currently limit a president to a maximum of three four-year terms, which means that Infantino can assume the position until 2031. Speaking immediately after the re-election to serve from 2023 to 2027, President Infantino said: “Being FIFA President is an incredible honour, an incredible privilege, and it is also a great responsibility. “I am truly humbled and touched by your support, and I promise you that I will continue serving FIFA, serving football all over the world and serving all 211 FIFA member associations.” For the first time in its history, an elective FIFA Congress took place in Africa. The proceedings were opened by President Paul Kagame, who, in his address, welcomed delegates from the 208 gathered member associations to his country, and congratulated Infantino on his impending re-election. ALSO READ: FIFA Congress: Keep bad politics out of sports – Kagame The FIFA President stressed FIFA’s role to organise competitions and to develop football. The President revealed that the 32-team FIFA Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand later this year will receive an extensive increase in prize money to over $150 million – more than three times the value from the last tournament in 2019, and 10 times more than in 2015. Infantino also referenced impending changes to the FIFA Under-17 World Cups at boys’ and girls’ level, which will see those tournaments played on an annual basis, as well as the launch of the FIFA World Series and the revised 32-team FIFA Club World Cup, with the intention of giving teams from every confederation more opportunities to compete on the global stage. ALSO READ: Kagame hails FIFA decision to double number of African teams at World Cup Continued good governance Continued good governance was also a key pledge – including additional changes to the transfer system and a continued commitment to financial sustainability across the football pyramid. For the next financial cycle, the commitment of $11 billion in revenue over the next four years was stated, which represents a substantial increase on the initial target of $6.4 billion from the previous cycle, and an increase on the $7.5 billion in revenue which was eventually reported. The global football’s governing body’s commitment to future generations was also mentioned – either on the pitch through the FIFA Talent Development Scheme or off it through football-related gaming – while the President assured that FIFA would maintain its position as a leading global force in ensuring the power of football is used to effect positive social change. The Congress also included a video address by Michael Llamas, President of the Gibraltar Football Association. In his role as chairperson of the FIFA Sub-Committee on Human Rights and Social Responsibility, Llamas explained that it is committed to assessing the human rights legacy of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, which would also support planning for future FIFA tournaments. The consolidated financial statements for 2022, the FIFA statutory financial statements for 2022, the 2023-2026 budget, the 2024 detailed budget and the appointment of the auditors for 2023-2025 were also approved. The date of the next Congress is May 17, 2024, the venue of which is yet to be confirmed.
