Uefa president ‘BOYCOTTS World Cup final over incomprehensible Balogun decision as rift with Fifa worsens’

UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin sensationally boycotted the World Cup final as football’s civil war with Fifa escalates further. The Slovenian stayed far away from Spain’s 1-0 extra-time victory over Argentina in New Jersey following the Folarin Balogun row. Aleksander Ceferin boycotted the World Cup final as war with Fifa escalates further Credit: Shutterstock Editorial Fifa boss Gianni Infantino was met with huge boos from the crowd at the World Cup final Credit: Getty The USMNT striker was permitted to start against Belgium in the last 16 game despite being sent off against Bosnia & Herzegovina. Ceferin had been expected to attend the finale alongside Fifa president Gianni Infantino but deliberately SNUBBED it instead. Sign up for the Football newsletter Thank you! Relations between the two governing bodies have quickly deteriorated since Fifa scrapped Balogun’s automatic one-match ban. Instead, Fifa suspended the punishment for a year under Article 27 of its disciplinary code. The world was quick to fume at the situation but Uefa reacted furiously alongside the Belgian Football Association. Uefa branded the move as “unprecedented, incomprehensible and unjustifiable” and warned Fifa it had “crossed a red line”. The controversy intensified after US President Donald Trump revealed he had spoken to Infantino about Balogun’s case before the decision was made. But Fifa insists the disciplinary committee acted independently. Most read in Sport BEST FREE BETS AND BETTING SIGN UP OFFERS Fifa reportedly rescinded Folarin Balogun’s automatic suspension following Donald Trump’s call Credit: Getty The Times reported that Ceferin’s decision to stay away from the final reflected the deepening rift between football’s two most powerful bodies. And tensions now extend FAR beyond the Balogun affair. Both have also clashed over Fifa’s plans to expand the World Cup to 64 teams, changes to VAR protocols, disciplinary rules and the growing commercialisation of the tournament. Ceferin’s boycott comes just days after human rights group FairSquare asked the International Olympic Committee to investigate Infantino’s role in the Balogun controversy. Comment now