Argentina is the only country to come to Infantino’s defence

So let it be civil war, then. The perfect illustration of football’s decline lies entirely in the clash between the federations over the future of Gianni Infantino, a man who, after staging a World Cup in winter, promising money and favours to secure his re-election, and attempting to turn the world’s most beautiful sport into a farce, still has the nerve to stand – as the sole candidate for now – for re-election as FIFA president in 2027. Since every age has the heroes it deserves, and ours is a sad age, we must content ourselves with applauding Aleksander Ceferin, the UEFA president who opposed the delusional plans to privatise the World Cup (plans revealed, thankfully, by a British newspaper; had we waited for your media, we’d all already be in a FIFA amusement park without even realising it), and Lise Klaveness, the president of the Norwegian Football Association, who yesterday told The Guardian that Infantino is a right pain in the arse (my own summary).

I’m grabbing a few mugs of lager to knock back on the sofa and am amused to watch the contortions of those who, until yesterday, were stroking Gianni’s bald head and are now whistling at him from a distance. I’m talking about the FIFA Legends, that bunch of washed-up former footballers and managers who act as ambassadors for the projects of world football’s governing body. I shall refrain from entering into the controversy over how much these Legends are paid, but it is certain that in recent years they have been FIFA’s friendly, presentable face, taking part in initiatives, travelling the world to promote institutional activities, sitting in the VIP stands and crowding the match buffets, reminding everyone just how talented and enlightened the great Italian-Swiss boss is.

Now that Infantino has asked them to defend him publicly, the Legends – perhaps accustomed to the numerous club changes they’ve made throughout their careers – have remembered that they’d booked a trip, forgotten to turn off the gas at home; in short, they had better things to do than speak well of the man who’s looked after them for years. Not only that, but some of them have even called for his resignation, suddenly realising that Infantino wasn’t the little angel they thought he was. Nothing to be surprised about, given the characters involved. Just as I certainly cannot feign surprise on reading that amongst the federations supporting the current president is – guess what? – Argentina, which expresses its “support for the work carried out over the last ten years, whose main objectives have been the development of football worldwide and institutional stability, based on a clear, stable and transparent model of governance”. And who would ever have thought it, after ten years in which FIFA’s aim has been to ensure that Messi’s team wins the European Championship, the Africa Cup of Nations and even neighbourhood tournaments?