Tebas opens new front in football’s calendar power struggle

La Liga president Javier Tebas has called for FIFA president Gianni Infantino to step down, escalating the dispute between domestic leagues and the world governing body over the international calendar and the potential expansion of the World Cup.Tebas said FIFA was making decisions that benefited its own flagship tournament while placing pressure on the leagues, clubs and competitions that generate employment and revenue throughout the season.Tebas said: “Increasing the number of national teams makes no sense. The football industry is not just the World Cup, which is the most important event. Not everything can revolve around the World Cup. It is national competitions that support this sport.“They are destroying the football industry, which generates tens of thousands of jobs, for an event that lasts 40 days and involves a minority of players. We need fewer national teams and more protection for national football, at all levels. They don’t realise, they are making irresponsible decisions.”His intervention followed the conclusion of the first 48-team FIFA World Cup and renewed discussion over whether the 2030 tournament could be expanded to 64 national teams.FIFA has not approved the proposed format, but Infantino has said the issue will be examined by the governing body’s relevant committees. CONMEBOL president and FIFA vice-president Alejandro Dominguez has publicly promoted the prospect of a 64-team centenary tournament.The proposal would double the 32-team format used between 1998 and 2022 and add another 16 sides to the expanded model introduced in 2026.Spain, Portugal and Morocco will stage most of the 2030 competition, with Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay hosting centenary fixtures. The cross-confederation structure has strengthened South American efforts to secure a larger tournament.Tebas argued that further expansion would intensify pressure on players and domestic competitions while concentrating more influence and revenue within FIFA.The dispute reflects a broader struggle over football’s calendar, with leagues, clubs, federations and international governing bodies competing for limited match windows and commercial value.Domestic leagues depend on regular broadcast, sponsorship and matchday income across long seasons. FIFA’s commercial model is more heavily concentrated around major tournaments that attract global audiences and premium media rights fees.Tebas said: “The best players are at the World Cup, clearly, but they are also in our leagues. We need fewer international matches and more protection for national football, at all levels.”The La Liga chief also directly challenged Infantino’s leadership and FIFA’s election structure, claiming opposition to the president existed within football but was not being translated into a credible challenge.Asked whether Infantino should leave office, Tebas added: “In my opinion, yes, I think his time is up. However, he has the support of the system, of the federations, so there is not much more to add, is there?“There is no opposition candidate, nobody wants to stand just to lose. This is the system and it is a system rotten at its core.”Infantino has led FIFA since 2016 and is expected to seek another term at the governing body’s next presidential election. His position is supported by FIFA’s national member associations, which each hold a vote in the election.Tebas claimed that several football executives had privately expressed concerns about Infantino’s decisions during the World Cup but were unwilling to oppose him publicly.Tebas said: “These past few days here in America I have heard many people who are against Infantino, who disagree with what he does. They say it, but then they do nothing.“I don’t know if silence or complicity is worse, because those who are silent are perfectly aware of the damage football is suffering.”His criticism extended beyond tournament expansion to FIFA’s management of the 2026 World Cup, including mandatory hydration breaks, the extended interval during the final and the disciplinary case involving United States forward Folarin Balogun.FIFA introduced three-minute hydration breaks during matches regardless of conditions. The governing body presented the measure as part of its player welfare provisions, while the pauses also created scheduled windows that could be used by broadcasters.Tebas rejected FIFA’s welfare justification and argued that the breaks had been designed to create additional advertising inventory. He said: “Hydration breaks are a lie. We have them in La Liga, but when it’s genuinely hot. Here, the pitches in Dallas, Los Angeles and Atlanta had air conditioning. I had to put on a jumper in the stands. It was a lie, a break for advertising.”The World Cup final also featured an extended half-time show that increased the interval from the standard 15 minutes to more than 27 minutes.The longer break demonstrated the growing commercialisation of FIFA’s leading event, with entertainment programming offering additional opportunities for sponsorship, advertising and audience engagement.Tebas said: “FIFA arranges things as it wants, for what it wants, for its own interests, certainly not for football. So, if they need a 27-minute half-time break, they’ll have it.”He also criticised the decision to suspend Balogun’s one-match ban before the United States’ last-16 match against Belgium.The suspension followed contact between US president Donald Trump and Infantino, although Infantino said the decision was made independently by FIFA’s disciplinary committee under the applicable regulations and based on the circumstances of the case.Tebas said the issue could have developed into a serious governance crisis had the United States progressed further in the tournament.Tebas said: “The suspension of the American player’s ban was absolutely serious. They were lucky Belgium eliminated the USA because a case could have arisen that might have cost Infantino his job. Since Belgium won, they managed to bury the matter. But these things are just the tip of the iceberg.”The comments add to longstanding tensions between Tebas and football’s international authorities.La Liga has repeatedly challenged the expansion of international competitions and warned that additional fixtures weaken domestic products, increase player workload and reduce the ability of leagues to plan their seasons with certainty.FIFA and UEFA have also faced legal and political pressure over how they approve competitions, set the calendar and distribute revenue across the football system.Tebas argued that the governing bodies’ regulatory power should be exercised in consultation with clubs, leagues and other industry stakeholders rather than used to advance their own competitions.The debate over the 2030 format will now move into FIFA’s committee process, where any expansion would require formal approval and detailed negotiations covering the calendar, venues, qualification, player release and commercial rights.