La Liga president Javier Tebas has intensified his criticism of FIFA president Gianni Infantino, saying the football governing body’s chief should step down because he is “destroying the football industry”.
Speaking to Italian newspaper La Gazzetta dello Sport, Tebas said Infantino’s leadership had run its course and accused FIFA of putting the World Cup ahead of domestic football. “In my opinion, yes, I think his time is up,” Tebas said when asked if Infantino should resign.
The Spanish football chief argued that FIFA’s electoral process leaves little room for change despite growing dissatisfaction among football stakeholders.
“There’s no opposition candidate, nobody wants to stand just to lose,” Tebas said.
“He shouldn’t stay, but the current state of affairs means he won’t leave.”
Tebas, who was in the United States to watch Spain lift the 2026 FIFA World Cup, claimed many people privately oppose Infantino but refuse to challenge him publicly.
“These past few days here in America, I’ve heard many people who are against Infantino, who disagree with what he’s doing,” Tebas said.
“They say it, but then they do nothing. I don’t know what’s worse, the silence or the complicity, because those who stay silent are perfectly aware of the damage football is suffering.”
He also revisited the controversy surrounding United States striker Folarin Balogun, whose suspension before the last-16 clash with Belgium was postponed following intervention from US President Donald Trump.
“The suspension of the American player’s ban was absolutely serious. They were lucky that Belgium eliminated the USA, because otherwise a case could have arisen that might have cost Infantino his job,” Tebas said.
“Since Belgium won, they managed to bury the matter. But these things are just the tip of the iceberg.”
UEFA had earlier condemned FIFA’s decision, describing it as “unprecedented, incomprehensible and unjustifiable”, while its president Aleksander Ceferin skipped the World Cup final in protest.
Tebas also rejected FIFA’s proposal to expand future World Cups to 64 teams, insisting domestic competitions remain the foundation of the sport.
“Increasing the number of national teams makes no sense. The football industry isn’t just the World Cup,” Tebas said.
“It’s the national competitions that sustain this sport. They are destroying the football industry, which generates tens of thousands of jobs, for an event that lasts 40 days and involves a minority of players.
“Are the best players there? Clearly, but they are also in our leagues. We need fewer international matches and more protection for national football, at all levels. They don’t realise they are making irresponsible decisions.”
The La Liga boss also criticised mandatory hydration breaks and the extended 27-minute half-time show at the World Cup final, accusing FIFA of prioritising commercial interests.
“FIFA arranges things as it pleases, for what it wants, for its own interests, certainly not for football,” Tebas said. “So, if they need a 27-minute half-time break, they’ll have it.
“Hydration breaks are a lie. We have them in La Liga, but only when it’s genuinely hot.
“Here, the pitches in Dallas, Los Angeles, Atlanta had air conditioning; I had to put on a jumper in the stands. It was a lie, a break for advertising.
“It’s proof that we are governed by an institution that does and decides what it wants, when it wants, following only its own interests without considering the rest of football. And in many cases, it acts to the detriment of football.”
Cristiano Ronaldo expresses unhappiness with Infantino’s FIFA
The debate gathered further attention after Cristiano Ronaldo appeared to react on social media by liking an Instagram post that criticised FIFA in strong terms. The post featured Spanish journalists Pilar Rodrigues Losantos and Ruben Amon questioning the governing body’s handling of the World Cup.
Rodrigues Losantos said: “Argentina is a team that should have been eliminated about five matches ago, thanks to the help of FIFA, one of the most corrupt institutions on the planet [they weren’t eliminated].
“Consequently, Argentina doesn’t scare me at all; what scares me is Infantino.
“I believe we won’t just be playing against Argentina, but against the entire FIFA institution, which wants to hand the World Cup to Messi, just as happened four years ago in Qatar.”
Amon added: “Ticket prices have turned what was once a sport for the masses into an experience reserved for the elite; football is a people’s sport that has ceased to be one.
“I consider FIFA to be an abject, mafia-like, and shameful organisation. Football survives despite the conduct of this disturbing body, and we will still enjoy the match, but not because of the conditions FIFA has imposed.”
FIFA also faced criticism during the tournament over several officiating decisions involving Argentina. Questions were raised after Lionel Messi escaped disciplinary action for a challenge on Algeria captain Aissa Mandi, while Egypt protested a series of VAR decisions in their last-16 defeat, including a penalty appeal involving Mohamed Salah that was not reviewed before Argentina scored the winning goal at the other end.
Naija News reports that Spain eventually defeated Argentina 1-0 after extra time in the final, with Ferran Torres scoring the decisive goal.
