The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has confirmed it will not investigate FIFA president Gianni Infantino after receiving a complaint over his relationship with United States President Donald Trump.
Human rights organisation FairSquare alleged that Infantino breached the IOC’s rules on political neutrality by expressing support for Trump during the World Cup.
The complaint followed Trump’s admission that he had personally contacted Infantino to request a review of the red card shown to United States striker Folarin Balogun.
Balogun had been expected to miss the USA’s World Cup last-16 clash with Belgium after being sent off in a 2-0 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina.
However, following Trump’s intervention, the striker’s automatic one-match suspension was suspended for 12 months. No further explanation was given beyond reference to a regulation allowing disciplinary sanctions to be suspended.
Balogun went on to start the last-16 tie, which the United States lost 4-1 to Belgium.
Infantino has been an IOC member since 2020.
IOC plays down Infantino controversy
Article two of the Olympic Charter states that IOC members “will not accept from governments, organisations, or other parties, any mandate or instructions liable to interfere with the freedom of their action and vote.”
Despite that, the IOC said the complaint fell outside the remit of its ethics commission.
In a statement, the organisation said: “The current complaint, with regard to the FIFA president, refers only to the international federation’s decisions on its governance and its management, including its relations with government, and to the international federation’s implementation of the rules of its sport, which are both outside the scope of application of the IOC Code of Ethics.”
The announcement came a day after the Norwegian Football Federation revealed it was considering submitting a formal complaint to FIFA’s ethics committee over the decision to suspend Balogun’s automatic ban.
