HARDLY WORKING
Fifa has long promised to grow the game in the USA USA USA, and what better place to do that than by opening a new office at the original venue of the 1991 Rumblelows League Cup fifth-round draw, Trump Tower in New York City. With its former leader recently involved in (and acquitted from) a corruption case, and accusations of the current president pursuing “private interests” over his responsibilities, what better place for Fifa to shake off the image as a cash-chasing, power-hungry behemoth than in the actual residence of the current USA president?
“Fifa [is] a global organisation [and] to be global you have to be local, you have to be everywhere, so we have to be in New York,” Infantino said, ignoring that after the opening of an office in Miami last year that had absolutely nothing to do with the recent signing of Lionel Messi in the city, Fifa now has more offices in the US than it does in the entirety of either South America or the Far East. “Not just for the Fifa Club World Cup this year and the Fifa World Cup next year – we have to be in New York as well when it comes to where our offices are based.”
Gianni and co do have a men’s World Cup to prepare for in a year’s time, although Football Daily does not recall Fifa opening any offices in any of the previous host World Cup nations – Qatar or Russia – since Infantino was elected in 2015. But Trump Tower is a special place: four gold-painted elevators and 240 tons of Breccia Pernice pink white-veined marble adorn the skyscraper’s lobby and public spaces, plus the in-house restaurant, Trump Grill, was once labelled by Vanity Fair as perhaps “the worst restaurant in America”.
Fifa offices have always been a bit quirky, though, and none stranger than their global headquarters in Zurich, a zero-emission building which is mostly underground, with the meeting room for the executive committee hermetically sealed. “Places where people make decisions should only contain indirect light,” said former president Sepp Blatter after the building’s completion in 2006, a devastatingly bad attempt to distance himself from the image of a Bond villain. “Because the light should come from the people themselves who are assembled there.” Sure.
President Trump unfortunately chose not to come downstairs into the light of the press conference to open this new office – in fairness, he has got quite a bit on, at the moment – with renowned soccer enthusiast Eric Trump instead shunted out to face the cameras alongside Infantino. “On behalf of myself, on behalf of New York, on behalf of the Trump Organization and everybody that works in this building – we love you. We’re honoured, we’re excited about all the things that Fifa is doing,” trumpeted Eric, with a straight face.
LIVE ON BIG WEBSITE
Join Emillia Hawkins for piping hot Euro 2025 updates of England 2-1 Netherlands at 5pm (all times BST), while Will Unwin will be on hand at 8pm for Wales 0-3 France. And in the Copa Gianni, Scott Murray will helm our minute-by-minute report of the second semi-final – PSG 4-2 Real Madrid – with kick-off also at 8pm.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
If it’s not a nice moment for Beth, it’s not a problem for me. Tomorrow for once we will not be friends. I will do everything I can to win tomorrow. Our golden rule is we do not discuss anything [pre-match]. I don’t know whether she’ll be starting tomorrow or whether she’ll be on the bench. As a Dutch player I will do everything possible to win the game” – Vivianne Miedema has insisted she will “not be friends” with her partner Beth Mead as the two face off for England’s critical Euro 2025 game against the Netherlands.
FOOTBALL DAILY LETTERS
Tuesday’s Memory Lane [full email edition] got me thinking of today’s overpaid top footballers and reminiscing back to a time when they could expect a more modest celery” – John Pickett.
I had a look and Chelsea have already spent over €267m this summer, on top of the more than €1bn they have spent since Todd Boehly took over three years ago. In fact, after buying Jamie Gittens, they now have 52 players (not including under-21, academy and on-loan players). To paraphrase Andy Warhol, ‘In the future, everyone will be be on the books at Chelsea for 15 minutes’” – Noble Francis.
I refer to the recent correspondence in which Frankie Dodds, dying on his hill, patiently explained to Barry Glendenning that the M1 becomes the A1 once it passes the border into Northern Ireland. Lovely stuff. But in his broadside, Frankie says that Barry is ‘once an Offaly native’. Has Barry been born multiple times?!” – Bryan Evans.
It’s a slow week in football when neither Euro 2025 or the Copa Gianni generate more b@nter-worthy content than the observation that Manchester United are NOT going to make a fly-on-the-wall documentary. Nobody expects the revolution to be televised, but should we be worried that Football Daily will miss it too?” – Brian Broderick.
In answer to the question of what Big Sir Jim might want booming over the PA at Old Trafford, may I suggest Seasons In The Abyss by Slayer?” – Kevin Goddard.
Send letters to the.boss@theguardian.com. Today’s prizeless letter o’ the day winner is … Brian Broderick. Terms and conditions for our competitions can be viewed here.
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