UEFA confirms six-figure pay-off over alleged Infantino love affair
UEFA has confirmed it paid a six-figure settlement and funded an MBA for a woman who allegedly had a relationship with Gianni Infantino while he served as the body’s general secretary, according to a Telegraph investigation.
UEFA has admitted paying a six-figure settlement to a woman who allegedly had a relationship with Gianni Infantino during his time as the body’s general secretary, according to a Telegraph investigation published Friday.
The woman, reportedly promoted to a managerial role during the alleged affair, later received funding for an MBA course worth around £45,000 a year.
Sources confirmed to the Telegraph that then-Uefa president Michel Platini confronted Infantino over the relationship and insisted either he or the woman leave the organisation.
Infantino allegedly agreed she would go, later using his connections to help her secure a new post in a similar field, according to multiple witnesses cited in the report.
UEFA confirmed the payment in a statement, saying it complied with regulations in place at the time and that staff rules have since been “tightened” to reflect modern standards.
A FIFA spokesman rejected the allegations entirely, insisting no employee had ever raised a complaint about Infantino’s conduct and calling any suggestion of wrongdoing defamatory.
The report lands amid mounting pressure on Infantino following the collapse of his FIFA Forward Enterprise investment scheme, which UEFA helped defeat with a 55-0 boycott vote.
Reports from Yahoo Sports and Football Today corroborate the core details of the Telegraph investigation, including the alleged promotion and subsequent settlement.
Infantino joined Uefa in 2000 and left in 2016 to become FIFA president. He has told senior staff he has no plans to resign, and met officials in Morocco this week as scrutiny over both the allegations and his broader leadership continues to build.
