FIFA Congress Takeaways: Infantino Reveals Re

VANCOUVER — The most significant decision makers in world soccer descended to the shorelines of the Pacific Ocean on Thursday, with over 1,600 people at the Vancouver Convention Centre for the 76th FIFA Congress.

It marked the first FIFA event in Canada since the 2015 Women’s World Cup, and acted as the final meeting before the 2026 World Cup, of which Vancouver will host seven matches up to the round of 16.

No hosts were chosen for the 2031 and 2035 Women’s World Cups, with that announcement pushed to an extraordinary conference in November. However, it is expected that the 2031 tournament will be awarded to the United States, Mexico, Costa Rica and Jamaica, with the 2035 edition bound for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, with no other bids on the table for either.

Here, Sports Illustrated looks at the most significant storylines from the meeting.

Iran Absent, Assured for World Cup

Iran was the only nation not in attendance at the Congress, marked as absent as the other 210 FIFA members confirmed their attendance. Yet, FIFA president Gianni Infantino passionately assured Iran’s participation in the 2026 World Cup, despite the ongoing conflict in the region and the concerns of playing in the United States.

“Iran will be participating at the FIFA World Cup 2026, and of course, Iran will play in the United States,” Infantino said. “We have to bring people together ... It is my responsibility, it is our responsibility. Football unites the world, FIFA unites the world, you unite the world, we unite the world.

“We have to remember, always, that we have to be positive. We have to be smiling, we have to be happy. There are enough problems around the world, there are enough people who try to divide all over the world. If nobody tries to unite, what will happen to our world?”

According to several reports, the head of the Iranian Football Association, Mehdi Taj, arrived in Canada through Toronto, but had a visa revoked due to ties with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, a listed terrorist identity in Canada, leading the entire delegation to miss the Congress.

Iran will not play group stage matches in Canada, with the Group G schedule sending them to Los Angeles and Seattle for games against Belgium, Egypt and New Zealand.

Infantino Launches Re-Election Bid

The 56-year-old FIFA president announced that he will run for re-election in 2027, with the FIFA Congress set for Morocco, the governing body’s second straight election in Africa, where Infantino has built strong relationships.

FIFA will stage the election March 18, with Infantino looking for a fourth term and potentially third unopposed election, after winning his first leadership race in a five-candidate contest in 2016, filling the void for previous president Sepp Blatter.

“I am honored and humbled at the same time," Infantino said, with the confederations from Africa (CAF) and Asia (AFC) already backing his hopes of a fourth term.

Infantino Embraces U.S. Sporting Culture

Infantino proudly shared that FIFA expects to make in $13.1 billion in the first 48-team World Cup this summer, and that, as a non-profit, those profits will go towards the 211 member nations.

To reach that point, Infantino said that he has learned by spending more time in North America and the United States, “where the commercialization of sport is reaching different levels, and we can see that in this World Cup.

“FIFA has 211 members, and all 211 are equal. You are all equal to us. We will not leave anyone behind,” he added, adding that the entire ticket inventory for the upcoming tournament had been sold—despite tickets available on the system in the hours after the Congress.

“There are expensive tickets, yes, but there are also affordable tickets and what is important is that all the revenues that we generate from the World Cup to you go back to you, go back to the entire world and finance football in all of your countries.”

Palestinian FA Hits Out at Israeli Official

Only two FIFA members spoke at the Congress, as Palestinian soccer federation president Jibril Rajoub and Israel FA vice-president Basim Sheikh Suliman took to the podium, regarding Israel’s funding of clubs within Palestinian territories and Israel’s participation in global soccer, a case which has been raised to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

After both spoke, Infantino took to the stand and invited each for a photo-op handshake, leading to Rajoub’s rejection, while Suliman stood idle.

“Gianni has the right to try to bridge gaps. He has the right to try to bring people together, but I think maybe he does not know the deep suffering of the Palestinian people and the Palestinian sport family,” Rajoub told international media of declining the handshake.

“Sport is not more than exposing our just cause through the ethics and the values of sport, and it means that someone who is trying to undermine, and someone who is trying to destroy everything should face sanctions.”

No further actions were taken by either nation nor FIFA, with the case now in front of the CAS.

Outside of the meeting agenda, the FIFA Congress held a memorial and moment of silence for those within soccer who had passed away in recent years, including former Liverpool star Diogo Jota, Israeli MLS player Gadi Kinda and former U.S. business leader Rocco B. Commisso.

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