host the AFC Asian Cup 2027.
USA:Five Major League Soccer
fixtures are postponed in the wake
of protests following the police
shooting ofJacob Blake in
Kenosha, Wisconsin.
TUNISIA:The long-awaited Tunis
derby between century long rivals,
Club Africain and Esperance,
ends in a goalless draw.
SCOTLAND:Celtic are stunned in
the Champions League qualifiers,
with Hungarian side Ferencvaros
winning 2-1 at Celtic Park.
NETHERLANDS:Ajax defender
Daley Blind collapses during a
friendly against Hertha Berlin
but later says he is “feeling fine”.
ThursdayAugust 27
LIBERIA:The Liberian Football
Association announces the
contract extension of national
team coach Peter Butler.
SOUTH AFRICA:Mamelodi
Sundowns give themselves a
great chance of winning a third
South African league title in a
row by beating Kaizer Chiefs.
FRANCE:Midfielder Paul Pogba
tests positive for coronavirus,
ruling him out of France’s
UEFA Nations League clashes.
FridayAugust 28
MALAYSIA:More than five
months since the Malaysia Super
League was brought to a halt,
football in the Southeast Asian
country resumes.
SaturdayAugust 29
USA:Orlando City pick up their
first win against Southeast rivals
Atlanta United, relying on two
first-half goals to land a 3-1 win
at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
ENGLAND:Millie Bright and Erin
Cuthbert goals see Chelsea beat
Manchester City 2-0 to win the
Women’s Community Shield – the
first double-header with the men’s
clash, which sees Arsenal beat
Liverpool on penalties.
CHILE:Chilean professional
football resumes without the
public and under strict sanitary
measures, after the suspension
of all championships in March
due to the coronavirus pandemic.
SAUDI ARABIA:Al Hilal win the
2019-20 Saudi Pro League title
with two matches to spare thanks
to a 4-1 victory over Al Hazm.
SundayAugust 30
USA:Real Salt Lake owner Dell
Loy Hansen announces that heWORLD SERVICEcourtroom, though, they are resorting to less
sophisticated measures. Secretary general Fatma
Samoura vowed to open internal proceedings for
sanction against the TTFA, if Wallace does not
withdraw his court case by mid-September.
Trinidad and Tobago must submit, according
to FIFA, or be broken.
But how did it come to this?
Well, on November18, 2019, Infantino flew to
Trinidad to speak on a red-letter day for then TTFA
president DavidJohn-Williams. It was the opening
of his controversial Home of Football project.
In truth, duringJohn-Williams’ five-year tenure,
the TTFA’s debt soared from $2.6 million to $7m
and counting, while the Soca Warriors’ FIFA ranking
slid from 49th to104th; their only win in the last18
months came against the world’s lowest-ranked
side, Anguilla.
The facility that Infantino “opened” remains
unfinished. When the FIFA president cut the ribbon,
the “hotel” did not have its own power source,
insurance for commercial
purposes or even a proper
kitchen. At present, it is being
used to house COVID-19
patients and, even for that
purpose, it required significant
sprucing up by the
government.
Meanwhile,John-Williams
is yet to produce receipts for
over $2m spent during its
construction.Six days after Infantino’s speech, Trinidad and
Tobago’s football delegates voted Wallace into
office by a margin of 26 to 20.
Four months later, the Bureau of the FIFA
Council ejected Wallace, citing: “Extremely low
overall financial management methods, combined
with a massive debt.”
Wallace had not even had time to do his first
balance sheet, nor had he received a cent in due
FIFA Forward funding.
This, of course, is the “what” rather than the “why”.
Infantino andJohn-Williams have history. When
the Swiss-Italian campaigned to replace Sepp Blatter
as FIFA president,John-Williams broke ranks with
the Caribbean Football Union (CFU) to endorse him.
A year later,John-Williams showed letters of
support from UEFA and CONCACAF when he ran
for CFU president. He failed to dislodge Antiguan
incumbent Gordon Derrick. But, within months,
FIFA moved Derrick anyway – through an ethics
committee charge based on a supposed conflict
of interest committed between two-and-a-half
to six years prior.
Caribbean officials who appear to stand in
Infantino’s way tend not to last long.
Former FIFA presidents trusted Caribbean men
likeJack Warner andJeffrey Webb to run the region
for them, arguably as little more than vote farms.
These days, CONCACAF is in the hands of
Canadian Victor Montagliani, which makes the
balance of power even more susceptible to ripples.
If FIFA had doubts about whether they could
work with the new men in charge of the TTFA, they
were unlikely to have been assuaged onJanuary 22,
2020, when general secretary Ramesh Ramdhan
vowed to probe the Home of Football project and
publicise the findings.
“I knew you were a central figure during the
construction phase of this project,” Ramdhan wrote
to FIFA chief member association official Veron
Mosengo-Omba. “I am of the view that FIFA has
indeed been compromised in this scenario...The
manner in which the project was being managed
should have raised red flags.
“Given the revelations, it is curious and even
suspicious that the project continued uninterrupted.”
If Ramdhan did have incriminating documents,
then, by seizing control of the TTFA’s offices, FIFA
now has it under its thumb.
Trinidad and Tobago has been burnt already
by “dodgy” FIFA presidents and their bullying local
consigliere. They do not want “anotherJack Warner,”
and have shown more appetite for a fight than
anticipated, although the fear of a suspension is
turning the heat
up considerably in
the tropical twin
island republic.
Is Infantino
bluffing? Or will the
Soca Warriors sleep
with the fishes?
Either way,
Infantino will not
be remembered
well for his clumsy,
chaotic Caribbean
coup.Presidents...
Infantino with
MontaglianiTrinidad and Tobago must
submit, according to FIFA,
or be broken. But how did
it come to this?Home of football...Infantino
withJohn-Williams at last year’s
Home of Football opening