UEFA Confirms Departure Payment to Ex-Employee Amid Infantino Allegations
UEFA has confirmed it made a “departure payment” to a former female employee who is alleged to have been in a relationship with Gianni Infantino during his time as the organisation’s general secretary.
The payment, first reported by the Daily Telegraph, is understood to be a six-figure sum and was made after the end of the woman’s employment. It came alongside UEFA funding fees for an MBA course at a local business school.
In a statement, European football’s governing body did not address the allegation of a relationship, but did confirm the financial settlement.
“We are aware of the allegations and can confirm a departure payment was made to the individual in question, coupled with the payment of fees for a MBA course at a local business school,” a UEFA spokesperson said. “The payment was in line with the regulations that existed for departing staff at the time.”
UEFA added that its internal rules have since been tightened.
“Such regulations have been tightened since 2016 and the current staff regulations – which apply to all UEFA employees at whatever level – reflect those found in a modern, high-profile organisation.”
Infantino, who worked at UEFA for 16 years and served as general secretary from 2009 until his election as FIFA president in February 2016, has rejected the claims. A spokesman for the FIFA president told the Telegraph that Infantino “strongly denies these categorically untrue allegations”.
The Press Association has contacted FIFA for comment.
The revelation lands at a moment when Infantino is already under intense pressure. For more than a week, he has faced a backlash over his controversial plan to bring private investors into a new company that would run FIFA’s competitions, including both the men’s and women’s World Cups.
That project has split the game’s political landscape. UEFA and two other continental confederations rejected the proposal outright. Infantino, however, received the backing of FIFA’s management board at a meeting in Morocco on Wednesday, after which he issued an apology over the way the process had been handled.
UEFA was unmoved. Its threat that all 55 of its member associations could boycott FIFA competitions until the investment plan is scrapped remains on the table. On Thursday, the European body made clear that FIFA’s show of internal support “changes nothing”.
At the heart of world football, a power struggle is hardening. UEFA has tightened its own house rules since Infantino’s departure. Now it waits to see whether FIFA’s president will be forced to do the same.
