Jordan Football Chief Accuses FIFA President Infantino of Blackmail

Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.uz) — Jordan Football Association President Ali bin al-Hussein has accused FIFA President Gianni Infantino of blackmail, stating that global football's governing body refused to assist in resolving the Jordanian federation's issues until it supported his re-election for a new term.

In a post on social network X, Ali bin al-Hussein said that during the World Cup, he was verbally informed that supporting Infantino's candidacy would "greatly assist" in settling the matters facing the Jordanian federation. He said the organization adheres to high ethical standards, which is why it did not support the incumbent FIFA president previously and does not intend to do so in the future.

The head of the Jordanian federation emphasized that he considers such actions blackmail and declared that the organization does not intend to give in to pressure.

Among the unresolved issues, he cited problems with issuing visas to fans planning to attend the 2026 World Cup, taxation on revenue related to the national team's participation in the tournament, and a lack of payments for the team's performance at the Arab Cup held in Qatar last December.

The statement came amid mounting criticism directed at FIFA leadership following the abandonment of an initiative to establish a commercial entity to manage the organization's major tournaments with external investors. The project caused severe disagreements within world football.

In recent days, UEFA and CONCACAF have also publicly expressed disagreement with Gianni Infantino's course, calling for a comprehensive review of FIFA's governance system. In addition, the Football Association of Wales withdrew its support for Infantino's candidacy in the upcoming FIFA presidential election, with other national football federations considering similar steps.

At the time of publication, FIFA had not publicly responded to the allegations made by the president of the Jordan Football Association.