Nasser Al-Khelaifi, president of the French football club Paris Saint-Germain, said on Tuesday evening that the European search for a candidate to compete with Gianni Infantino in the elections for the presidency of the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) will not end with him or settle on him.
Al-Khelaifi also heads the influential European Football Clubs Group and is therefore a member of the Executive Committee of the European Football Association (UEFA), which is leading efforts to oust Infantino, after his plan to sell shares in future World Cup profits to private investors failed.
Al-Khelaifi said during a press conference following the annual meeting of the European Football Clubs Group in the Danish capital, Copenhagen: “I have no interest at all in FIFA, nor any agenda or ambition to take up a position there.”
The president of Paris Saint-Germain, the Champions League title holder, added: “I do not think I am the right person for this position, and frankly I do not want to take it. I am enjoying what I am doing currently. I think the position of FIFA president is not suitable for me. Thank you all".
The annual meeting of the group, which includes 900 clubs, came at a time of great political unrest in football, amid questions about Infantino’s future as president of FIFA. The meeting comes two months after Infantino's plan to create a FIFA subsidiary worth billions of dollars was revealed, before the plan was rejected a few days later. It also precedes the deadline for submitting candidates to compete with Infantino by seven weeks.
UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin is leading a campaign to end Infantino's presidency, whether before or during the elections scheduled for next March 18 in Morocco, and Ceferin also spoke with club officials yesterday, Tuesday. “Football does not need emperors,” Ceferin said in a speech that lasted about ten minutes, and in which he did not mention Infantino’s name.
Infantino's most prominent plans since his first election in 2016 were often considered a threat by UEFA officials, the federation in which he previously worked. Ceferin's references, including his talk about creating an award for a political figure, were clearly directed at Infantino and his close working relations with US President Donald Trump.
Ceferin, Vice President of FIFA, who ruled himself out of running for the presidency of the International Federation, said: “It is time to say: Enough is enough.” The rules were modified when they became inappropriate. People who were supposed to have a say were excluded. The future of football has become just another bargaining chip.”
Tim Rehm, captain of the US national soccer team, announced his retirement from international football yesterday, Tuesday, ending a busy career that spanned 16 years, during which he played 86 matches for the national team and won two titles in the CONCACAF Nations League.
The 38-year-old veteran defender led the American team in the World Cup hosted by his country this year, contributing to their reaching the round of 16 before being eliminated by Belgium.
“The journey is over for me,” Reem, a Charlotte FC player, who previously played for Fulham and Bolton Wanderers, told reporters before the friendly match against Chile in his hometown of St. Louis, Missouri. “I feel very proud to have been part of this project for 16 years, but it is time to turn the page and step away from the national team.”
The retirement announcement came before the US team's 4-2 win over Chile, while the US team prepares to face Mexico in Glendale, Arizona, next Saturday, before hosting Canada in St. Paul, Minnesota, on October 6.
The NBA is close to selecting new owners for the new Las Vegas club, with a value ranging between 12 and 13 billion dollars for the franchise rights, in addition to the cost of building a new stadium, according to media reports.
The league is currently considering including two new teams in Las Vegas and Seattle, bringing the total number of league clubs to 32 teams, perhaps by 2028.
According to what ESPN reported on Tuesday, there is still a short list of three contenders for the Las Vegas team, including an offer from Nancy Walton Lowry, heir to the Walmart chain. Canadian billionaire Steve Apostolopoulos is leading another bid, while Bill Foley, owner of the Vegas Golden Knights ice hockey team, is leading the third bid.
Last March, the NBA's Board of Directors voted to study the Las Vegas and Seattle markets, and it is expected to obtain official approval for the expansions by next December. A new basketball gym at the south end of Las Vegas' Main Street has been widely proposed as part of the city's bid to host basketball games, although Foley, the Knights' owner, has also suggested modifying his NHL team's T-Mobile Arena.
Las Vegas hosts the NBA Summer League, and T-Mobile Arena hosted the semifinals and finals in the first three editions of the NBA Cup. But the city, which is home to the NFL's Raiders team and will soon host a Major League Baseball team, has never had its own team in the basketball league.
Seattle is expected to play at Climate Pledge Arena, home of the Kraken hockey team, on the ice, and at the former Seattle SuperSonics arena, which moved to Oklahoma City in 2008. A decision on Seattle's owners will be made at a later date.
