Gianni Infantino has urged critics to 'chill and relax' in response to the backlash FIFA faced after Somali referee Omar Artan was denied entry into the United States. The FIFA president spoke on several topics at a press conference on Wednesday, where he also revealed that he would have driven the Iranian national team bus from Tehran to the US to ensure their participation in the World Cup.
Infantino's First Public Address in Three Years
This was Infantino's first public address in three years, and he discussed several controversial topics ahead of the tournament's kickoff on Thursday. Iran was unsurprisingly among those topics, with their football federation already releasing several statements in addition to visa problems upon arriving in the United States.
On Iran, Infantino said: 'I'm very happy because I went to see the Iranian team in Turkey in March, and people were saying it would be impossible for Iran to come to the World Cup. I promised them that they would come, and if I had to go with a bus to Tehran and drive them, I would do that.'
Somali Referee Denied Entry
While it is encouraging to see Iran at the tournament despite the continuing conflict in the Middle East, Somali official Omar Artan will not be taking part. He was barred from entering the country earlier this week, with a White House representative stating he was denied entry owing to an 'association with suspected members of terror organizations.'
Infantino has now shared his views on the matter, making a peculiar assertion. He said: 'The third point about the visas, we have heard and read a lot. In terms of the US, we have been able to organise with the American administration the FIFA pass system. It is a speedy process which I'm told is working, maybe not always with everyone. We have obtained that the bonds and payments which have to be made to some countries in Africa have been waived for those who are coming, we obtained it for the fans. Of course it is unfortunate what happened to Omar, the referee from Somalia, but again, we don't control everything.'
Infantino added: 'We try, we will discuss, we will see. Maybe sometimes it is good to 'chill', relax, we work on everything. We try to solve everything. To immediately shout is the opposite to finding a solution, believe me or don't, we always try to find solutions but we have to respect we aren't kings of the world who can overrule administrations, the police. We are a sports organisation, we try to do our best, we do as much as possible.'
He concluded: 'We want to unite the world, and if I can ask you one thing, if you want to criticise me, criticise me, that's fine. But promote the unity of the World Cup, feeling emotions of the World Cup when you were children, and I hope you will feel them because we want to unite the world.'
