SerpApi.Org
UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin boycotted the World Cup Final amidst the growing rift between the European organisation and FIFA.
The Slovenian, who has been President of UEFA since 2016, was supposed to be in attendance for the final, but The Times were first to report that he refrained from attending the Final in New Jersey as the tensions between the two organisations have grown.
Ceferin was first openly critical of FIFA’s ticket prices for the World Cup, and made the point of making 40% of tickets for the 2028 Euros in the UK & Ireland affordably priced between €35 and €70, while pledging not to use dynamic pricing.
UEFA were also critical of the inability to give Iran equal treatment to the other 47 teams at the World Cup, with the Middle Eastern side forced to move bases to Tijuana, Mexico and were not permitted to stay in the US after their matches, being forced to immediately take flights back to Mexico.
The organisation have also been publicly critical of USA forward Folarin Balogun getting his one-match ban for his red card against Bosnia and Herzegovina suspended by the FIFA disciplinary committee, which US President Donald Trump took credit for after he called FIFA President Gianni Infantino.
‘We express our disbelief at such an unprecedented, incomprehensible and unjustifiable decision’, the organisation said in a statement.
The US influence on the World Cup also saw Somali referee Omar Artan unable to enter the country to officiate at the World Cup, to which UEFA immediately appointed him to referee the UEFA Super Cup final next month between Aston Villa and PSG.
In another act against FIFA’s wrongdoings at the World Cup, UEFA clarified their interpretation of the ‘mistaken identity’ law in VAR reviews.
This comes after Switzerland’s Breel Embolo got a second yellow card after a VAR review determined that his dive against Argentina warranted a card after Leandro Paredes was originally booked for fouling the forward.
UEFA also won’t have players red-carded for covering their mouths, which was seen on multiple occasions in the tournament.
