La Liga president Javier Tebas has publicly called for FIFA president Gianni Infantino to resign from his position [1].
The demand reflects a growing tension between domestic leagues and global governing bodies over the sustainability of the football calendar. As FIFA pushes for more frequent and larger tournaments, league executives argue that player fatigue and commercial saturation are reaching a breaking point.
Tebas said that "FIFA is destroying the football industry" [2]. He specifically cited the handling of the 2026 World Cup and the trajectory of the sport's leadership as primary drivers for his demand [3].
Central to the dispute is the proposal to further expand the World Cup. Reports indicate that a possible 64-team tournament has been discussed for 2030 [4]. Tebas said such expansions harm the competitive integrity of the sport and place an undue burden on the athletes.
"His time is up," Tebas said during a recent address [5].
The La Liga chief said that "Infantino should leave, his time has come" [6]. This public confrontation marks a significant escalation in the ongoing conflict regarding how international football is governed and monetized.
While FIFA maintains that expanding the tournament increases global accessibility and revenue, league presidents like Tebas argue these moves prioritize profit over the health of the game. The disagreement highlights a systemic rift between the organizations that manage weekly league play and the entity that oversees the world's largest sporting event.
“"FIFA is destroying the football industry"”
This confrontation signals a deepening divide between the commercial interests of European domestic leagues and FIFA's global expansion strategy. If other league presidents align with Tebas, FIFA may face significant institutional pressure to scale back the 2030 World Cup expansion to avoid a full-scale revolt from the clubs that provide the sport's primary talent.
