Is Gianni Infantino right? Would football not exist in '150 countries' without FIFA?

Football in 150 countries would not exist without FIFA.That is the view of Gianni Infantino, the president of world football’s governing body, who espoused as much during a talk at the World Sports Summit in Dubai in late December.For some context to the above claim, Infantino’s speech came in the weeks after the 2026 World Cup general ticket prices were announced on December 11 to widespread backlash and condemnation over their costs. This prompted FIFA to introduce a “supporter entry tier” five days later, offering around 1,000 tickets per game for $60 to supporters of the two competing teams in each encounter. a.showcase-link-container { display: flex; gap: 20px; flex-direction: column; align-items: center; padding: 20px 0px; border-top: 1px solid rgba(150, 150, 147, 0.4); border-bottom: 1px solid rgba(150, 150, 147, 0.4); text-decoration: none; color: #121212; cursor: pointer; .showcase-link { font-family: nyt-franklin; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 700; line-height: 13.8px; letter-spacing: 1.1px; text-transform: uppercase; } .showcase-link-image { border-radius: 8px; object-fit: cover; width: 200px; height: 150px; margin: 0px; @media (max-width: 600px) { width: 120px; height: 120px; } } .showcase-link-inner-content { display: flex; flex-direction: row; gap: 16px; width: 100%; } .showcase-link-text-content { display: flex; flex-direction: column; gap: 20px; justify-content: center; @media (max-width: 600px) { gap: 8px; } } .showcase-link-title { font-family: nyt-cheltenham; font-size: 24px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 500; line-height: 120%; /* 24px */ letter-spacing: 0.01px; text-overflow: ellipsis; overflow: hidden; display: -webkit-box; -webkit-box-orient: vertical; -webkit-line-clamp: 3; @media (max-width: 600px) { font-size: 16px; } } .showcase-link-excerpt { font-family: nyt-imperial; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; line-height: 139%; /* 19.46px */ color: #323232; text-overflow: ellipsis; overflow: hidden; di...