Infantino likes a baldy joke, but the fans will see it as bare-faced cheek

He likes a baldy gag, we learned that much.

"See you at the hairdressers," was Gianni Infantino's answer when I asked him if he had betrayed the trust of FIFA.

I'm as bald as he is, fyi. So that was a giggle.

But the trouble with Gianni is that when he laughs, football doesn't laugh with him.

The issue isn't baldness, it's bare-faced cheek. That's certainly how the fans see it.

Supporters' groups worldwide have launched a petition calling for his resignation, for the credibility of FIFA and the future of football. They accuse the man who controls its direction of making a mockery of the game. It's their game and that's a fundamental point missed in the Infantino affair, certainly by the man himself.

He offended FIFA associations with a secretive plan to bring private money into the hen house, that much is clear. Multiply that for football supporters who were shut out of the shaping of their game and remain so today.

As Infantino travels the world in a private jet schmoozing the suits he hopes will re-elect him for a fourth term as FIFA president next year, football fans have no access and no engagement with the man in charge.

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There's been an apology from FIFA about the aborted effort to sell-off some of football's Crown Jewels, and there was a corporate video in which Infantino interviewed himself. What there hasn't been is sufficient public interrogation of Infantino, his intentions then and his intentions now.

He is doing a lot of leg work on his own behalf, behind closed doors, but why should that remain private? Why shouldn't the Infantino agenda be laid bare before us all and the fans who make football can make up their own minds about where he's taking their game.

Answering questions upon arrival in the Dominican Republic would have been a start - of greater value, certainly, than a few quick-fire bald gags. With Infantino, like every other football fan, I'm keen to assess where his self-interest meets football's interests.

There are serious questions that he needs to address publicly and the fact he consistently dodges them has to be a worry. I want to hear where the game's going. Baldy jokes are great, but I've heard them all before.

(c) Sky News 2026: Infantino likes a baldy joke, but the fans will see it as bare-faced cheek