Spaniard Fernando Alonso, two-time world champion, raised questions on the eve of his home Spanish Grand Prix, when he was asked if he had made his long-awaited decision about his future in Formula 1.
After a disappointing season so far with the Aston Martin team due to the adoption of new technical regulations this year, Alonso was expected to announce his decision before the first race at the new Madring circuit.
When the 45-year-old driver was asked if a decision was imminent, he simply replied: “Not soon.”
Regarding the reason for his continued postponement, he added: “Because I think this is a good thing,” preferring to evade the answer and hint sarcastically about whether Aston Martin was pressuring him to make a decision, but he explained that he was aware of other drivers’ conversations with Lawrence Stoll, the team owner, regarding a possible vacant seat.
To clarify his position, the world champion with Renault in 2005 and 2006, who has participated in 441 races in his career so far, said that he hopes that the changes that occurred in the rules this year will make the races more enjoyable and satisfying during the coming year.
He concluded by saying, “Next year, there will be a step in the right direction,” revealing that he is considering multiple options, including the possibility of changing his role in the team.
In the first category, Alonso won 32 grand prizes, climbed to the podium 106 times, started from first place 22 times, in addition to recording the fastest lap during the race 26 times.
For his part, Emirati Mohammed bin Sulayem, President of the International Automobile Federation, confirmed that it is not “acceptable” for Alonso to leave Formula 1 competitions, and pledged to try to persuade the two-time world champion to change his mind.
Ben Sulayem's statements came on Friday, one day after Alonso announced that he was considering other options, such as participating in a different racing series or assuming a role not related to driving next season.
Bin Sulayem said during his speech at the “New Economy Forum” in Madrid: “In no way can we allow Fernando, who is a great hero, to leave... because of the current circumstances.” This is not the way to withdraw from the scene; He should achieve success first and then leave whenever he wants, not be forced to leave due to a decline in performance.”
Bin Sulayem indicated that he had already spoken with the owner of the Aston Martin team, Lawrence Stroll, to try to help the team improve its performance, as Alonso had only scored three points after 13 races this season.
He added: “I realize the extent of the problems. The car does not provide the required performance. “I have met with the owner, Lawrence, and I will work to make the necessary changes. I will also speak with Alonso to try to convince him to change his mind. This is unacceptable.”
Ben Sulayem stated that he heard rumors about Alonso's possible desire to leave, but the driver did not mention anything of the kind to him during their last conversation. He also indicated that he had previously told Alonso: “It is not acceptable for you to come to your country with a car at the back of the starting line.”
The International Federation of Association Football (FIFA), through its judicial authorities, decided to impose a life-long ban on any activity related to playing on two former presidents of national federations due to financial violations. This decision also included an official who remained in his position even though he was subjected to sanctions in 2011 due to a famous scandal related to offering electoral bribes in the Caribbean region.
FIFA said in a statement on Friday that Vincent Cassel, who headed the Montserrat Federation for a long time, was convicted on numerous charges, including abuse of influence and systematic conflicts of interest, as well as the misuse of funds belonging to FIFA and his country’s federation.
FIFA also announced the exclusion of Bassam Adel Jalil, the former president of the Maldives Football Association, from practicing any football activity, due to the misuse of funds allocated to a relief plan launched by the International Federation to confront the repercussions of the Corona virus in order to achieve personal gains.
Media in the Maldives reported this year that Jalil was sentenced to 23 years in prison on charges of embezzling $1.2 million in FIFA funds, which were allocated to support local football. Reports indicated that this money was used to buy residential apartments.
Cassel and Tandika Hughes, who served as Secretary-General of the Montserrat Federation for a long time, admitted this before a court in Montserrat last April on charges related to tax evasion.
They were previously questioned in 2011 by the FIFA Disciplinary Committee due to their connection to the case of officials in the Kiribi region receiving sums worth $40,000, as part of the failed campaign led by Qatari Mohammed bin Hammam, to compete with Swiss Sepp Blatter for the presidency of FIFA.
Swiss Gianni Infantino, President of the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA), on Friday launched the slogan of his campaign for re-election to a new term, stressing that he will continue to work to give all federations in the world a greater opportunity to participate and develop, at a time when European pressures demanding his departure are mounting.
According to Sky News, Infantino announced during a brief speech to reporters in Switzerland that his campaign slogan will be: “Football belongs to everyone, everywhere in the world,” in his first appearance in which he clearly defines the message with which he will fight his re-election battle next year.
Infantino said: “We want to give everyone the opportunity to dream and participate,” stressing his desire to “reduce the gap between adults and all others,” adding that this is the approach that he will continue to work on during the coming period.
The statements of the FIFA President reflect his commitment to continuing with his re-election battle despite the mounting criticism directed at him, especially from Europe, following the crisis of the “FIFA Forward Enterprise” project, which aimed to sell a share of the commercial and operational rights associated with the International Federation’s championships to private investors, before abandoning the project last August.
The launch of the logo comes one day after sources in world football confirmed to Reuters that Infantino now has a sufficient number of votes among the 211 national federations to allow him to move confidently towards the elections scheduled for March 2027, in light of his continued support from a large number of small federations, in addition to strong bases of influence in Africa, Oceania and South America.
The new electoral message appears to be an extension of the rhetoric that Infantino has adopted over the past weeks. During his meeting with the heads of the Caribbean federations in August, he stressed that FIFA’s mission is to develop football throughout the world and reduce the gap between the major countries and the rest of the federations, considering that smaller countries need more investments, opportunities and resources.
On the other hand, the front of those opposing him is expanding within Europe, after the French Football Federation withdrew its support for his re-election, and its president, Philippe Diallo, described Infantino as becoming a “divisive” figure, and accused him of harming the image and unity of football.
The European Football Association (UEFA) is also continuing its legal efforts in the United States to obtain documents and certificates related to the canceled investment project, as part of studying a possible criminal complaint in Switzerland related to suspicions of mismanagement, while Infantino denies committing any violations, and no criminal charges have been brought against him.
Recent developments indicate that Infantino is moving to present his re-election battle as a defense of the interests of small federations and expanding their opportunities in the face of the hegemony of major traditional powers, at a time when his opponents have begun to study options that go beyond overthrowing him electorally to redistributing the powers of the FIFA presidency and strengthening oversight and governance mechanisms within the international federation.
