The IOC says the charges against Infantino, a member and FIFA president, are outside the jurisdiction of its ethics committee.
Published July 24, 2026
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has dismissed a complaint against FIFA president Gianni Infantino by human rights group Fair Square, saying the matter is outside the jurisdiction of its ethics committee, an IOC spokesperson said.
“The IOC Ethics Commission has thoroughly analyzed the allegations from Fair Square,” an IOC spokesperson said on Friday.
“The Committee noted that the complaints, including those regarding the FIFA President, only refer to the IF’s decisions regarding governance and operations, including its relations with governments, and its implementation of the Competition Rules, both of which are outside the scope of the IOC Code of Ethics,” the spokesperson said.
“This complaint is outside the jurisdiction of the IOC Ethics Committee. Fair Square has been informed accordingly,” the spokesperson added.
FairSquare filed a complaint on July 14, alleging that Infantino “repeatedly violated IOC rules on political neutrality by expressing political support for U.S. President Donald Trump.”
The group announced it would file a complaint about Infantino’s “repeated violations of political neutrality rules”, further escalating its already campaign to challenge FIFA’s ethics processes.
The organization also filed a complaint with FIFA’s Ethics Committee last year, alleging that Infantino had expressed public support for President Trump’s actions and policies on several occasions.
Infantino, who has been an IOC member since 2020, has faced intense scrutiny for his repeated appearances alongside President Trump, the main focus of FairSquare’s complaint.
During this year’s World Cup, which was co-hosted by the United States, Mexico, and Canada, President Trump was involved in several controversial incidents. On July 19, boos rang out around New Jersey Stadium in New York as Mr. Trump and Mr. Infantino entered the field for the World Cup trophy presentation ceremony.
President Trump said he called Infantino at the beginning of the tournament and asked him to review the red card given to U.S. forward Folarin Balogun in the last-32 match against Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Balogun was suspended for the last-16 game against Belgium, but was cleared to play in the United States’ 4-1 loss.
The US president received FIFA’s inaugural Peace Prize in December for his efforts to promote dialogue and de-escalation in some of the world’s major conflict hotspots.
