Football Leaks creator Rui Pinto has renewed his criticism of FIFA president Gianni Infantino following Manchester City's guilty verdict in the Premier League's long-running financial case.
Pinto, whose leaked documents helped bring greater scrutiny to City's finances, has accused Infantino of intervening in UEFA's handling of earlier financial fair play concerns involving Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain.
In a statement posted on X, Pinto argued that Infantino should have no role in the future of football. His comments repeat allegations he first made public through the Football Leaks revelations several years ago.
The latest intervention comes after an independent commission found Manchester City guilty of 114 of the 115 charges brought by the Premier League. The allegations covered financial matters over several seasons, while City continue to deny wrongdoing and are expected to challenge the findings through the appeal process.
Pinto's claims centre on events from 2014, when Infantino was UEFA's general secretary.
According to documents previously published by Der Spiegel as part of the Football Leaks revelations, City and PSG faced scrutiny over the value and structure of sponsorship agreements in relation to UEFA's financial fair play rules.
Pinto has alleged that Infantino became involved in the process and helped steer the two clubs towards financial settlements rather than allowing the cases to develop into deeper investigations that could potentially have resulted in Champions League sanctions.
Those claims have never been established as findings against Infantino. When the allegations first emerged, UEFA said the general secretary was entitled to take part in discussions and assist the relevant investigative bodies. Infantino also defended his involvement, saying that communication and the exchange of documents were part of his responsibilities at UEFA.
PSG similarly rejected the allegations at the time, insisting that the club had always complied with the rules and had been subjected to extensive financial scrutiny.
Pinto has now returned to the subject after City's latest Premier League verdict, arguing that the findings give renewed significance to the issues raised by Football Leaks.
His comments come as Infantino faces separate scrutiny over the governance of FIFA.
The FIFA president's proposed FIFA Forward Enterprise, which would have created a commercial structure involving private investment in FIFA competition-related assets, was abandoned after significant opposition. The controversy has subsequently contributed to disagreements between FIFA and several European football authorities.
The Swiss Football Association became the latest national federation to withdraw its support for Infantino's re-election. The SFV had backed his candidacy in June but reversed that position after reassessing developments surrounding FIFA's leadership, governance, transparency and decision-making processes.
Infantino is seeking another term as FIFA president at the election scheduled for March 2027. Candidates have until 18 November 2026 to submit their nominations.
UEFA and several national associations have been calling for greater governance reforms within FIFA, while Infantino has said he is open to discussions about reform.
Pinto's latest comments therefore arrive at a moment when both his historic Football Leaks allegations and the wider debate over FIFA governance have returned to the spotlight.
However, the allegations Pinto has made about Infantino's conduct in the 2014 UEFA process remain allegations, separate from the independent Premier League commission's findings against Manchester City.
No comments: