Swap deal: Infantino offers Morocco the chance to host the World Cup final in return for one favour

FIFA president Gianni Infantino offered Morocco the chance to host the 2030 World Cup final in return for a single favour, according to a press report, as the crisis threatening his future at the top of FIFA gathers pace.

Britain’s The Times reports that Infantino, currently in Morocco, promised the Kingdom the right to stage the 2030 final at the new Hassan II Stadium in Casablanca. The catch? Morocco must publicly declare its support for him against the growing calls for his departure.

Morocco will host the 2030 World Cup finals alongside Spain and Portugal, with three opening matches taking place in South America to mark the 100th anniversary of the first edition of the tournament.

The Kingdom wants the final at the Hassan II Stadium, a 115,000-seat venue expected to become the largest football stadium in the world once complete. The Santiago Bernabeu stands as the leading rival to host the showpiece.

Infantino is worried about slipping support from some of his allies, according to the report, among them Saudi Arabia, hosts of the 2034 World Cup finals. European opposition to him has grown since the collapse of his plan to sell a stake in the commercial rights of the federation’s tournaments to private-sector investors.

Prince Ali bin Al Hussein, president of the Jordan Football Association, accused Infantino on Tuesday of blackmail, claiming the FIFA chief pressured his association to back his re-election campaign.

Former Portugal star Luis Figo has joined the growing list of critics, calling for Infantino’s immediate exit from the FIFA presidency.

Figo branded the actions of the federation’s president “the most base, deceitful and selfish” he had seen in football. He added that Infantino “has disfigured the position he promised to develop, and has lied, deceived and sought to serve his personal interests instead of serving the game”, insisting the time had come to save football through his departure.

The developments follow Arsene Wenger’s announcement that he is not taking part in the plan to sell the commercial rights. FIFA’s chief of global football development said he learned of it through the media, and that his decision to withdraw was “necessary and not open to discussion”.

Wenger believes in the need for an independent FIFA that operates with transparency and integrity and serves world football, a stance widely read as an attempt to distance himself from the crisis engulfing the federation.