On Thursday, Gianni Infantino was re-elected unopposed as FIFA’s president until 2027 at the congress of the world football governing body.
The 52-year-old Swiss lawyer took over from the disgraced Sepp Blatter in 2016, and this marks his third term.
He was elected by acclamation, as he was four years ago, by delegates from the 211 member federations.
Infantino acknowledged that there were those who loved him and those who did not, but he expressed his love for them all.
The voting system in the Rwandan capital did not record the number of dissenting voices.
Although the FIFA statutes limit a president to a maximum of three four-year terms, Infantino has laid the groundwork to remain until 2031.
He declared in December that his first three years at the helm did not constitute a full term.
Infantino has overseen the expansion of the men’s and women’s World Cups and a significant increase in FIFA’s revenues.
Lise Klaveness, president of the Norwegian Football Federation, stated that she would not support Infantino and presented a proposal to discuss at the congress “FIFA’s responsibilities to remedy human rights abuses” concerning the Qatar World Cup and future tournaments.
However, Infantino’s opponents, primarily based in Europe, were unable to nominate a candidate to challenge the man who was once Michel Platini’s deputy at UEFA.
