Kaveh Solhekol

Chief Correspondent @SkySports @SkySportsNews. Ex The Times.

[Maher Mezahi @MezahiMaher]

An unworried Gianni Infantino just appeared alongside Mattias Grafstrom on the broadcast of Malawi vs Zambia at the 2026 WAFCON in Morocco

It’s been reported that Infantino chaired a crisis meeting at the FIFA office in Rabat earlier today

[Kaveh Solhekol @SkyKaveh]

Arsène Wenger statement:
The recent events at FIFA deserve some clarity from my side.
At FIFA, I am the Chief of Global Football Development. 
Together with my team, I oversee the data analysis of the game, the FIFA online training centre, the development of youth education through 60 academies across 60 countries where they are most needed, and youth competitions around the world.
In addition, I am a technical adviser to IFAB.
I was not involved in this strategic plan and first became aware of the project through media reports.
The decision to withdraw the project was absolutely necessary and beyond question, because I firmly believe in an independent FIFA that serves our game with commitment, transparency, and integrity.

[John Duggan @JohnDugganSport]

It now seems that when you join the dots, the 2026 World Cup was a glossy brochure for private investors to parasite off the game of football in the future. The absurd ticket prices, the hydration breaks, the half time show, the bending of the rules for entertainment, not sport.

[Kaveh Solhekol @SkyKaveh]

Gianni Infantino has pulled the plug on his World Cup sell-off plan in a desperate attempt to keep his job as FIFA president. With pressure increasing on him from inside and outside FIFA, Infantino was forced to act to save his own skin. A late-night statement was released by FIFA at 12:30am, but in a clear sign that Infantino is losing support from within the organisation he is supposed to lead, it was marked clearly as being attributable to “the FIFA president”.

The statement was short by FIFA standards and anyone looking for the word “sorry” or any kind of apology was disappointed. For Infantino, sorry still seems to be the hardest word.

The big question now is whether Infantino can survive. In normal circumstances you would ask how damaging this has been for Infantino’s reputation, but many would argue that he does not have much of a reputation left to damage. It is difficult to unseat a FIFA president and knowing Infantino, you would expect him to try to cling onto power for as long as possible.

There is a FIFA presidential election in March in Morrocco and up until the events of this week, it was almost guaranteed that Infantino would be the only candidate. He already had the support of more than 200 of FIFA’s 211 member associations – including the English FA – but many of those federations will now be reconsidering their options. Many leaders in the world of football will now be looking for a rival to back before candidates have to declare their intention to stand for the presidency before the November 18 deadline.

In the meantime, Infantino has a lot of explaining to do – to the people he works with at FIFA, FIFA Council members, Confederation presidents, federation presidents and chief executives, the bankers and investors he worked with secretly on this doomed project and President Trump.

Trump famously doesn’t like losers. Infantino promised him something he could not deliver. How long will it be before even Trump decides that Infantino is yesterday’s man?

[Nazanin Boniadi @NazaninBoniadi]

The sentencing of singer Parastoo Ahmadi to flogging for the simple act of singing publicly without a hijab and continued execution of protesters is a stark reminder that, despite talk in Washington of a “new regime” in Iran, the Islamic Republic’s machinery of repression remains unchanged.

https://t.co/mtkCajvLQV

[The Times and Sunday Times @thetimes]

‘Iran regime killers shot my son dead in his hospital bed’ https://t.co/bRF6mVw5l8

[Sarah Champion @SarahChampionMP]

Remember the Iranian people, an excellent article by @VictoriaPeckham reflecting on the horror of daily life - especially for women & girls - before and still now in Iran

Enjoy this article for free.

https://t.co/fB26ihMIS1

[The Telegraph @Telegraph]

Iran has publicly executed Saleh Mohammadi, a teenage member of the country’s national wrestling team, who was arrested during January’s protests.

He was executed despite evidence that his family said proved he had been elsewhere at the time
🔗: https://t.co/2na7mT1DDp

[Kaveh Solhekol @SkyKaveh]

Tottenham majority owners the Lewis family trust have put another £100m into the club and more could be on the way. A source close to the family said: “This is initial additional funding. As the club’s management decides what’s needed to deliver success, more money will be available. The Lewis family is committed to backing the club to be successful.”

[Kaveh Solhekol @SkyKaveh]

Burnley owner Alan Pace has completed takeover of Espanyol through his company Velocity Sports Partners. Deal worth up to €200m. Will not impact or take resources away from Burnley.

[Kaveh Solhekol @SkyKaveh]

Tottenham takeover: Spurs not for sale after third prospective buyer confirms no intention to bid https://t.co/UdUWZUyi4i

[Kaveh Solhekol @SkyKaveh]

Tottenham are not for sale. There were three expressions of interest – of varying degrees of seriousness - in buying the club. As some Tottenham shares are still held by private investors, prospective bidders had to make their intentions clear, as set out in the Takeover Code. They have all now confirmed they will not be making bids. That means they cannot bid for six months – unless someone else enters talks about buying the club. The Lewis family are committed to owning Tottenham and are looking forward to a sustained period of stability and long-term success.

[Kaveh Solhekol @SkyKaveh]

Firehawk and Earick consortiums will not be making bids for Tottenham Hotspur. PCP International Finance (Amanda Staveley) said last month they would not be making a bid. Tottenham no longer in offer period.

[Kaveh Solhekol @SkyKaveh]

Get ready for a Spanish LaLiga game 5,000 miles away in Miami and an Italian Serie A game 8,000 miles away in Australia. UEFA have "reluctantly" approved Villarreal v Barcelona being played in Miami in December and AC Milan v Como in Perth in February. The games still have to be approved by FIFA, CONCACAF and the United States Soccer Federation (Villarreal v Barcelona) and FIFA, the Asian Football Confederation and Football Australia (Milan v Como). Rival cubs, including Real Madrid, and supporters’ groups are strongly opposed to domestic league games being played outside their home country.

If the remaining hurdles are cleared, Villarreal v Barcelona will become the first major European league game to be played in a foreign country. Villarreal have offered to pay travel costs for their season tickets holders to watch their “home” game in Miami. As Real Madrid have pointed out, the integrity of LaLiga could be undermined because Barcelona will play Villarreal twice at home this season - once in Barcelona and once in Miami, where the vast majority of fans will be supporting them.

FIFA is expected to drop its opposition to competitive domestic matches being played abroad after settling a legal challenge by US events promotion and media rights company Relevant Sports.

UEFA's executive committee was due to decide whether to approve the requests from the Spanish and Italian federations last month. It delayed making a decision in order to consult more widely with stakeholders. UEFA says the consultations confirmed its position that games should not be played abroad, but FIFA regulations - currently under review - are not clear so it will allow these two games to go ahead: "This decision is exceptional and shall not be seen as setting a precedent".

It is not clear whether Villarreal v Barcelona can be played on the scheduled date of 21 December as the Miami Dolphins are playing the Cincinnati Bengals on 22 December at the Hard Rock Stadium.

The Premier League have no plans at all to play games outside England.

[Kaveh Solhekol @SkyKaveh]

#202020: Who have been your club's three best Premier League signings since 2020? https://t.co/ohha1Nl78J

[Kaveh Solhekol @SkyKaveh]

FIFA wants football to come together and draw a line under legal disputes between stakeholders and the governing body. FIFPro and European Leagues have complained to the European Commission about changes to the international match calendar which they believe were made without proper consultation. There was a rallying call for the game to unite at today’s FIFA council meeting in Zurich. FIFA believes an attack on FIFA is an attack on football.

[Kaveh Solhekol @SkyKaveh]

Expanded World Cup and Club World Cup were not on the agenda when the FIFA Council met in Zurich today. The South America confederation CONMEBOL wants a 64-team World Cup in 2030. There has also been talk of the Club World Cup expanding from 32 to 48 teams and being held every two years instead of every four years.
Today’s Council meeting ended with a presentation about this summer’s 2025 Club World Cup in the United States. FIFA say the Council “were provided with a debrief of the successful Club World Cup” and European Club Association chairman Nasser Al-Khelaifi “re-iterated the global success of the tournament and the excitement from clubs for the future of the competition”.
According to FIFA, the total attendance at the Club World Cup was 2.5 million, there were no serious safety or security issues at any of the 63 games, fans from 168 countries bought tickets, 72 nationalities were represented in matches, clubs from five confederations won at least one game, $1 billion in prize money was shared between 32 clubs and there is a target of $250 million in solidarity payments for clubs around the world.

[Kaveh Solhekol @SkyKaveh]

Plan is for Nuno Espírito Santo to take West Ham training this afternoon

[Kaveh Solhekol @SkyKaveh]

Nuno Espírito Santo to be next West Ham head coach