La Liga chief Tebas slams Infantino for ‘destroying football industry’
3 min readJul 21, 2026 08:33 PM La Liga president Javier Tebas said that FIFA president Gianni Infantino should step down but due to lack of opposition and the election system being rotten to the core, he is likely to continue. Infantino is all but certain to secure a fourth term in office, with overwhelming support from global football bodies despite recent controversies, according to a report the Guardian.
More than 200 of FIFA’s 211 member associations have reportedly backed Infantino’s re-election bid, with only a handful of nations yet to submit letters of support. Germany remains the most notable holdout among European federations, though most of the continent has confirmed its endorsement, according to the Guardian.
“There’s no opposition candidate, nobody wants to stand just to lose. He shouldn’t stay, but the current state of affairs means he won’t leave,” Tebas said in an interview with Italian newspaper La Gazzetta dello Sport.
“These past few days here in America, I’ve heard many people who are against Infantino, who disagree with what he’s doing. 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 added.
Last week, Infantino said FIFA wanted to go up to 64 teams as early as the 2030 World Cup. The Swiss lawyer said the tournament should be “for the whole world,” but admitted that discussing the topic right now would be premature.
Tebas slammed the idea, saying that the football industry does not revolve around only the World Cup.
“Increasing the number of national teams makes no sense. The football industry isn’t just the World Cup. 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,” Tebas said.
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“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,” he added.
