Global InformationFIFA information
Fédération internationale de football association (FIFA) | |
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 Map of the members of FIFA according to their confederation | |
| Abbreviation | FIFA[1] |
|---|---|
| Founded | 21 May 1904 |
| Founded at | Paris, France |
| Type | Sports federation |
| Purpose | Sport governance |
| Headquarters | Zürich, Switzerland |
| Coordinates | 47°22′53″N 8°34′28″E / 47.38139°N 8.57444°E |
Region served | Worldwide |
Membership | 211 national associations |
President | Gianni Infantino |
Senior Vice-President | Salman bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa (AFC) |
Vice-Presidents |
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Secretary General | Mattias Grafstrom (Interim) |
Main organ | FIFA Congress |
| Subsidiaries |
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| Affiliations | International Olympic Committee International Football Association Board |
Staff | 700+ |
| Website | FIFA.com |
The Fédération internationale de football association (French for 'International Association Football Federation';[3] abbreviated as FIFA and pronounced in English as /ˈfiːfə/ FEE-fə) is an international self-regulatory governing body of association football, beach soccer, and futsal. It was founded in 1904[4] to oversee international competition among the national associations of Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain (represented by the Madrid Football Club), Sweden, and Switzerland. Headquartered in Zürich, Switzerland, its membership now comprises 211 national associations. These national associations must also be members of one of the six regional confederations into which the world is divided: CAF (Africa), AFC (Asia and Australia), UEFA (Europe), CONCACAF (North & Central America and the Caribbean), OFC (Oceania), and CONMEBOL (South America).
FIFA outlines several objectives in its organizational statutes, including growing association football internationally, providing efforts to ensure it is accessible to everyone, and advocating for integrity and fair play.[5] It is responsible for the organization and promotion of association football's major international tournaments, notably the World Cup which commenced in 1930, and the Women's World Cup which began in 1991. Although FIFA does not solely set the laws of the game, that being the responsibility of the International Football Association Board of which FIFA is a member, it applies and enforces the rules across all FIFA competitions.[6] All FIFA tournaments generate revenue from sponsorships; in 2022, FIFA had revenues of over US $5.8 billion, ending the 2019–2022 cycle with a net positive of US$1.2 billion, and cash reserves of over US$3.9 billion.[7]
Reports by investigative journalists have linked FIFA leadership with corruption, bribery, and vote-rigging related to the election of FIFA president Sepp Blatter and the organization's decision to award the 2018 and 2022 World Cups to Russia and Qatar, respectively. These allegations led to the indictments of nine high-ranking FIFA officials and five corporate executives by the U.S. Department of Justice on charges including racketeering, wire fraud, and money laundering. On 27 May 2015, several of these officials were arrested by Swiss authorities, who launched a simultaneous but separate criminal investigation into how the organization awarded the 2018 and 2022 World Cups. Those among these officials who were also indicted in the U.S. are expected to be extradited to face charges there as well.[8][9][10]
Many officials were suspended by FIFA's ethics committee including Sepp Blatter[11] and Michel Platini.[12] In early 2017, reports became public about FIFA president Gianni Infantino attempting to prevent the re-elections[13] of both chairmen of the ethics committee, Cornel Borbély and Hans-Joachim Eckert, during the FIFA congress in May 2017.[14][15] On 9 May 2017, following Infantino's proposal,[16] FIFA Council decided not to renew the mandates of Borbély and Eckert.[16] Together with the chairmen, 11 of 13 committee members were removed. FIFA has been suspected of corruption regarding the Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup.[17]
- ^ "Fédération Internationale de Football Association". Filmcircle.com. 11 June 2014. Archived from the original on 8 October 2014. Retrieved 11 June 2014.
- ^ "FIFA Committees – FIFA Council". FIFA. Archived from the original on 28 April 2015. Retrieved 19 December 2016.
- ^ "International Association Football Federation". International Olympic Committee. Retrieved 5 December 2022.
- ^ "History of FIFA - Foundation". FIFA. Archived from the original on 16 May 2015. Retrieved 15 June 2018.
- ^ "FIFA Statutes". FIFA. Archived from the original on 23 April 2015. Retrieved 10 July 2019.
- ^ "About FIFA: Organisation". FIFA. Archived from the original on 5 September 2015. Retrieved 10 July 2019.
- ^ "2022 Financial Highlights". FIFA. Retrieved 7 April 2023.
- ^ Clifford, Stephanie; Apuzzo, Matt (27 May 2015). "FIFA officials arrested on corruption charges; Sepp Blatter isn't among them". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 27 May 2015. Retrieved 1 March 2017.
- ^ "Nine FIFA Officials and Five Corporate Executives Indicted for Racketeering Conspiracy and Corruption". U.S. DOJ Office of Public Affairs. 27 May 2015. Archived from the original on 27 May 2015. Retrieved 27 May 2015.
- ^ Collett, Mike; Homewood, Brian (27 May 2015). "World soccer rocked as top officials held in U.S., Swiss graft cases". Reuters. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 27 May 2015.
- ^ "Sepp Blatter and Michel Platini banned for eight years by Fifa". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 10 January 2022. Retrieved 24 March 2017.
- ^ "Rise and fall of Michel Platini – the self-proclaimed 'football man' who forgot the meaning of integrity". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 10 January 2022. Retrieved 24 March 2017.
- ^ Conn, David (2 March 2017). "Trust in Fifa has improved only slightly under Gianni Infantino, survey finds". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on 24 March 2017. Retrieved 24 March 2017.
- ^ "FIFA Ethics Chiefs Facing Uncertain Future". The New York Times. Reuters. 15 March 2017. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 24 March 2017.
- ^ "Infantino at 1. Are the Ethics bigwigs the next stop on his personal 'reform' agenda?". Inside World Football. 27 February 2017. Archived from the original on 25 March 2017. Retrieved 24 March 2017.
- ^ a b "FIFA Ethics Committee still investigating 'hundreds' of cases: Borbely". Reuters. 10 May 2017. Archived from the original on 10 May 2017. Retrieved 10 May 2017.
- ^ Ellis, Sam (9 December 2022). "How FIFA corrupted the World Cup". Vox. Retrieved 10 January 2023.