Top football boss breaks ranks – and says FIFA is awarding World Cups without transparency
A world football boss has broken rank to claim FIFA is awarding World Cups – including to Saudi Arabia – without a transparent process.
Lise Klaveness is the first football federation chief to go public with concerns about the rapid, short-circuit process that effectively decided the 2030 and 2034 hosts in secret meetings led by FIFA President Gianni Infantino.
“It has not been a transparent process,” Ms Klaveness, the Norwegian football federation president, told Sky News.
“We have to expect good governance,” she added. “We had big, big, huge reforms in FIFA several years ago, which were good on paper, but it needs to be implemented and I cannot see how that has happened.”
Ms Klaveness also said she was “very concerned” that FIFA is not taking women’s football seriously enough, given a World Cup host for 2027 is yet to be confirmed.
Ms Klaveness is the Norwegian football federation president
The overall process appears at odds with the transformation of world football’s decision-making promised by Mr Infantino after replacing the discredited Sepp Blatter in 2016.
The 211 football nations should have had the final say on World Cup hosts – but last month, the closed FIFA Council suddenly produced an unprecedented plan to combine rival bids for a 2030 tournament in six countries on three continents.
And they formed a curtailed, favourable process that blocked most of the world from bidding – paving the way for the Saudi Arabia to be unchallenged for 2034.
“When decisions are made in closed rooms, it’s the opposite of what the reforms were promising us,” Ms Klaveness said.
The decision came after Mr Infantino prioritised trips to Saudi Arabia over most other nations in the last three years – regularly meeting Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and even appearing in a government promotional video advertising the virtues of the oil-rich nation.
Ms Klaveness said: “When we give away power … and money and influence to nations and hosts without knowing that FIFA has had enough objectivity and arm’s length distance and no conflict of interest in it, then we have a problem. So then the question needs to be asked.”
She hopes for transparency on Mr Infantino’s dealings with the Saudis while being focused on the process rather than the country itself.
She asked: “How have you [Mr Infantino] worked to keep an objectivity to business and knowing the fact that this is a lot of power? How has the power been separated between different bodies and persons so that you don’t get conflicts of interest?”
FIFA President Gianni Infantino at a 2026 FIFA World Cup ceremony. Pic: AP
FIFA has not explained why it only allowed countries in Asia and Oceania to bid for 2034 when North and Central American nations should have been permitted under the rotation system in the statutes.
Only weeks were given to form a bid that was too challenging for a democratic nation like Australia, which needs government agreements.
FIFA has sought to portray the selection of the 2030 and 2034 World Cup hosts as still being in play, with assessments of the countries to be conducted.
But Mr Infantino’s own comments on Instagram last week were taken as confirmation when he said the 2030 and 2034 tournaments were “set to be hosted” by the announced nations without any caveats mentioning an ongoing process.
A key part of that process should be human rights assessments, which FIFA has not fully committed to being published when pressed by Sky News.
Under FIFA regulations, a plan to mitigate risks should be presented to address anti-LGBTQ+ laws and the lack of equal rights for women.
But with the hosts already lined up, the importance of the bidding evaluations – a key reform from the start of the Infantino presidency – has been reduced.
Ms Klaveness said: “We don’t know if that’s a breach of a code of conduct or if there are good reasons to do so.”
Read more:
FIFA has ‘not changed’ and decisions still lack transparency
Mr Infantino has travelled to Saudi Arabia numerous times over the past few years
What about the Women’s World Cup?
FIFA has not explained why the 2027 Women’s World Cup host will not be selected until next year – with four rivals.
“Everyone should be very concerned with those symbolic signals you’re sending because we are in desperate need to have a balance that the women’s side is lifted at least at the same acknowledgement level as the men’s side,” Ms Klaveness said.
“And when you have those awards for three [men’s] World Cups and the next is not awarded for women, it might be a danger that people will view this as not taken as seriously.”
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‘FIFA is a pioneer for women’s football’
In response to the interview, FIFA insisted it is now a “respected, trusted and modern governing body.”
FIFA told Sky News that because the FIFA Congress still has the final ratification of World Cup hosts that “the suggestion that the Congress has been cut out is clearly misinformed.”
But FIFA acknowledged that “consultations with the confederations” – which were not publicly declared – had led to the decision to award two World Cups at the same time.
FIFA said in a statement: “Securing future FIFA World Cup hosts across multiple editions and cycles provides certainty and stability for FIFA’s flagship men’s football competition from a commercial, financial and operational perspective, which in turn helps position FIFA to best fulfil its key statutory objectives.”
But while highlighting the benefits of changes to the men’s World Cup process, FIFA responded to criticism of the deadline for the Women’s World Cup selection by saying it was “not substantially different to previous bidding processes.”
In 2018, Mr Infantino did oversee an unprecedented open vote for the 2026 World Cup with the combined United States-Canada-Mexico plan beating Morocco and the votes of the FIFA Congress made public.
But it was the ruling council of 37 members that decided to combine the interest from Spain, Portugal, Morocco, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay to create a vast 2030 World Cup – without putting the plan to the congress of every football nation.
World
Bodies of two more Israeli hostages handed over by Hamas – but uncertainty over missing remains
The bodies of two more Israeli hostages have been handed over to the Red Cross by Hamas – but uncertainty still hangs over the fate of the missing remains of others.
Under the ceasefire agreement, all remaining 48 hostages, dead and alive, were supposed to be returned by this Monday.
So far, only the 20 living hostages have been returned, as well as seven dead hostages, according to Israel’s count, with two further bodies still being verified.
Just hours after today’s handover, the Israeli military said a tenth body previously turned over was not that of a hostage – and the confusion added to tensions over the fragile truce that has paused the two-year war.
What has Hamas said?
Hamas has previously said recovering the remaining bodies could take time, as not all burial sites are known.
Its armed wing put out a statement on Wednesday, saying it has returned all the bodies it could reasonably recover, but would require special equipment to hand over the remaining ones.
Meanwhile, the Gaza Health Ministry said it received 45 more bodies of Palestinians from Israel, another step in the implementation of the ceasefire agreement.
Red Cross vehicles escort a truck transporting the bodies of Palestinian hostages. Pic: Reuters.
That brings to 90 the total number of bodies returned to Gaza for burial. The forensics team examining the remains claimed they showed signs of mistreatment.
Trump issues warning
The return of all the hostages is a key pillar of the deal agreed to by Israel and Hamas, heralded by US President Donald Trump as having brought “peace in the Middle East”.
Israel – which has freed around 2,000 Palestinian prisoners and detainees as part of the peace deal – had already threatened to keep the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt closed on Wednesday, and limit aid entering Gaza, due to Hamas not returning all of the dead.
And in an interview with CNN on Wednesday, Mr Trump warned that Israel could resume the war if he feels Hamas is not upholding its end of the agreement.
“Israel will return to those streets as soon as I say the word,” he said.
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Trump: ‘If Hamas doesn’t disarm, we will disarm them’
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Since the October 7 Hamas attacks on Israel in 2023 – in which around 1,200 people were killed and 251 taken hostage – the two sides have been at war.
Nearly 68,000 Palestinians have been killed since Israel’s subsequent offensive, according to the Health Ministry, which is part of the Hamas-run government in Gaza.
The ministry maintains detailed casualty records that are seen as generally reliable by UN agencies and independent experts – though the ministry does not say how many of those killed are combatants.
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Middle East correspondent Adam Parsons explains why tensions may begin to bubble
Similar incident in previous ceasefire
This is not the first time Hamas has returned a wrong body to Israel.
During a previous ceasefire, the group said it handed over the bodies of Shiri Bibas and her two sons, but testing in February 2025 showed that one of the bodies returned was identified as a Palestinian woman. Ms Bibas’ body was returned a day later.
Meanwhile, Hamas spokesperson Hazem Kassem accused Israel of violating the deal with shootings on Tuesday in eastern Gaza City and the southern city of Rafah.
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Israel’s defence minister, Israel Katz, said the military is operating along the deployment lines troops withdrew to under the deal, and he warned that anyone approaching the lines will be targeted, as happened on Tuesday with several militants.
Aid trickling in
The World Food Programme said its trucks began arriving in Gaza after the entrance of humanitarian aid was paused for two days due to the exchange on Monday and a Jewish holiday on Tuesday.
The timing of the scaled-up deliveries – which are also part of the ceasefire deal – had been called into question after Israel said on Tuesday that it would cut the number of trucks allowed into Gaza, saying Hamas was too slow to return the hostages’ bodies.
Trucks carrying humanitarian aid and fuel enter Khan Yunis, a city in the southern Gaza Strip. Pic: AP
Abeer Etefa, spokesperson for the World Food Programme, lauded the trucks’ passage but said the situation remained unpredictable.
“We’re hopeful that access will improve in the coming days,” she said.
The Egyptian Red Crescent said 400 trucks carrying food, fuel and medical supplies were bound for Gaza on Wednesday.
Fifteen UK charities have launched a fresh appeal for donations to Gaza to address “catastrophic levels of need” in the devastated region.
The charities make up the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC), which has been raising millions for Gaza – where tens of thousands have been killed over the past two years of war – and the wider Middle East.
After the initial stage of a much-sought ceasefire deal aimed at ending the conflict in Gaza was agreed on by Israel and Hamas, aid has begun to trickle into the devastated region again.
According to the DEC, its charities and local partners have been scaling up their work in the Gaza Strip since the agreement took effect last week.
Palestinians walk past the rubble of destroyed buildings in Gaza City. Pic: Reuters
It said lorries carrying food and other aid began to enter Gaza on Sunday, with the British Red Cross and Plan International UK among those confirming supplies had made it in.
After raising more than £50m since the Middle East Humanitarian Appeal was launched last October, the DEC is renewing calls for donations, saying £10 could provide blankets for two people, while £50 could provide emergency food for five families for one week.
Read more:
Trump warned plan for Gaza ‘doesn’t make sense’
Israel says no match for body handed over by Hamas
As goods are returning to Gaza’s markets, the DEC said, they are increasing cash assistance to help people buy essentials as they become more affordable.
They’re also distributing clean water, medicine, food, and nutrition support.
On its website, the DEC pointed to how famine was declared in Gaza City in August as it appealed for funds saying: “Your support can save lives.”
You can donate to the Middle East Humanitarian Appeal at dec.org.uk.
Donald Trump has refused to say if the CIA has the authority to assassinate Venezuela’s president, after approving covert operations in the country to tackle alleged drug trafficking.
The classified decision, first revealed by The New York Times, marks a significant escalation in efforts to pressure President Nicolas Maduro‘s regime.
Mr Trump said large amounts of drugs were entering the US from Venezuela, much of it trafficked by sea.
“We are looking at land now, because we’ve got the sea very well under control,” he said.
When asked why the coastguard wasn’t asked to intercept suspected drug trafficking boats, which has been a longstanding US practice, Mr Trump said the approach had been ineffective.
“I think Venezuela is feeling heat,” he said.
He declined to answer whether the CIA has the authority to execute Mr Maduro.
The US has offered a $50m (£37m) reward for information leading to his arrest, accusing him of connections to drug trafficking and criminal organisations – claims he denies.
President Nicolas Maduro. Pic: Reuters
Donald Trump at the White House on Wednesday evening. Pic: Reuters
US targets ‘drug boats’
Mr Trump also alleged Venezuela had sent a significant number of prisoners, including individuals from mental health facilities, into the US, though he did not specify the border through which they reportedly entered.
On Tuesday, he announced America had targeted a small boat suspected of drug trafficking in waters off the Venezuelan coast, resulting in the deaths of six people.
According to the president’s post on social media, all those killed were aboard the vessel.
Read more from Sky News:
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Venezuela opposition leader wins Nobel Peace Prize
Footage of the strike was released by Donald Trump on social media. Pic: Truth Social
The incident marked the fifth such fatal strike in the Caribbean, as the Trump administration continues to classify suspected drug traffickers as unlawful combatants to be confronted with military force.
War secretary Pete Hegseth authorised the strike, according to Mr Trump, who released a video of the operation.
The black-and-white footage showed a small boat seemingly stationary on the water. It is struck by a projectile from above and explodes, then drifts while burning for several seconds.
Mr Trump said the “lethal kinetic strike” was in international waters and targeted a boat travelling along a well-known smuggling route.
There has also been a significant increase in US military presence in the southern Caribbean, with at least eight warships, a submarine, and F-35 jets stationed in Puerto Rico.
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