Spain has barely finished celebrating its World Cup victory when two of football's most influential voices turn on the man at FIFA's helm. Javier Tebas, president of La Liga, and former FIFA chief Sepp Blatter are now united on a single demand: Gianni Infantino must go. The alliance is striking — Blatter himself left office under a cloud of scandal a decade ago — yet both men argue that Infantino's reign has caused damage that goes far deeper than any personal controversy. Tebas is particularly incensed by Infantino's plan to expand the 2030 World Cup from 48 to 64 national teams.

Speaking to Italy's La Gazzetta dello Sport, he accused FIFA of "destroying the football industry" — a machine that sustains tens of thousands of jobs worldwide — in order to inflate a tournament that runs for just 40 days and involves only a fraction of professional players. Blatter, meanwhile, has called on fans, players and national associations to "reclaim football and bring it back to its roots under new leadership," a phrase that reads more like a manifesto than a retirement grievance. The criticism sharpens around a specific incident involving US striker Folarin Balogun. A one-match ban against him was suspended by FIFA's disciplinary committee shortly before the USA faced Belgium in the last 16 — a decision taken after a phone call from Donald Trump to Infantino.

Infantino insists the committee acted independently and followed applicable regulations. Tebas is unconvinced, warning that had the USA advanced rather than Belgium, the fallout could have ended the Swiss official's career on the spot. Yet Infantino appears almost impossible to dislodge. He is poised to be re-elected for a fourth term in March, potentially running unopposed for the third consecutive time, buoyed by near-total support from national federations.