UEFA To Meet In Bilbao After FIFA Congress Protest

The UEFA Executive Committee, most of whom spent last week in Paraguay at the FIFA Congress, will convene in Bilbao, Portugal, on Wednesday May 21 ahead of the Europa League final between Spurs and Manchester United.

Although not an agenda item, the committee is certain to spend time discussing their protest at the FIFA Congress where they walked-out at the coffee break after the Congress began three hours after its scheduled start due to the late arrival of FIFA president Gianni Infantino who had prioritised travelling to the Middle East with US president Donald Trump over his own annual membership congress.

FIFA tried to pass off the walk out that left Infantino flanked by eight empty seats as a travel issue and people needing to catch flights. But in a statement UEFA made it clear that wasn’t the case, saying:“The FIFA Congress is one of the most important meetings in world football, where all the 211 nations in the world’s game gather to discuss issues that affect the sport right across the world.

“Our hosts, the Paraguay FA and our partners at Conmebol, had gone to considerable effort to accommodate so many delegates and we thank them for their hospitality.

“But to have the timetable changed at the last minute for what appears to be simply to accommodate private political interests, does the game no service and appears to put its interests second.

“We now expect FIFA to explain this situation to its members and ensure that the voices of the member associations are heard and respected going forward.”

FIFA have issued no response to the walk-out or explanation. The question is now whether UEFA will keep pressure on Infantino to explain his actions and the football context of his trip with the US president to the Middle East in favour of dealing with the real issues facing global football.

On the UEFA ExCo’s agenda for its meeting will be discussion of the qualification format for UEFA EURO 2028 to be co-hosted in England, Scotland, Wales and the Republic of Ireland.

Other agenda items include:

Club benefits programme for 2024–28 distribution principles
UEFA men’s Under-17 and Under-19 competition regulations 2025/26
UEFA women’s Under-17 and Under-19 competition regulations 2025/26
UEFA Super Cup regulations 2025/26
Standing Facilities Observer Programme – update
UEFA said the appointment of hosts for the 2027 UEFA Champions League final and the 2027 UEFA Women’s Champions League final has been postponed until the next Executive Committee meeting in September.

Insideworldfootball.com