3 min readUpdated: Aug 5, 2026 09:14 AM IST
Jordan FA chief Prince Ali bin Hussein has accused FIFA president Gianni Infantino of “blackmail,” alleging that FIFA offered to resolve the kingdom’s footballing problems in exchange for his political endorsement.
Prince Ali, a former FIFA vice president, also claimed that his federation has still not received prize money owed for reaching the final of the FIFA Arab Cup in Qatar last December. He described the withholding of funds as a form of blackmail.
In a social media post, Prince Ali said that during the World Cup – where Jordan made its debut in June – he was told that endorsing Infantino “would go a long way to helping our FA out.” Infantino is currently under pressure to salvage his 11-year presidency following fierce backlash over his now-abandoned plan to sell a stake in future World Cup profits to investors led by Joshua Kushner.
“We pride ourselves in Jordan in upholding ethical values. We did not endorse him before and certainly will not now,” said Prince Ali, who finished third in a five-candidate FIFA presidential race when Infantino was first elected in February 2016. “But the whole situation amounts to blackmail and we refuse to give in to that,” he wrote on social media.
On the unpaid prize money, Prince Ali said: “The money our team should receive for having reached the final has not been delivered yet, while at the same time FIFA brags about how many billions they have in reserve. It is clear the problem really is with leadership.”
Football confederations and national associations had rejected Infantino’s proposal following a hard September 19 deadline. FIFA had argued that selling a minority stake in its commercial operations would raise billions to fund global sports development, but top executives, including Secretary General Mattias Grafstrom and Arsène Wenger, distanced themselves from the plan.
The Jordan FA chief also outlined several grievances facing his association as a small nation with a “minimal budget.” These included fans paying “exorbitant prices for tickets” while still being denied visas for the World Cup in the United States, and outstanding reward money for players’ participation in the 2025 Arab Cup.
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Adding to Jordan’s woes, Prince Ali complained about being taxed by the US government through FIFA for World Cup participation, costs not faced by teams based in Canada and Mexico. “We are being taxed by the U.S. government through FIFA for our participation. Money that should go to players and staff,” he said. “This was not the case for those who played and set up camp in Canada and Mexico. But we happened to be in the USA so now we face these huge costs in taxes for having participated.”
Jordan qualified for the World Cup for the first time but exited in the group stage.
FIFA has declined to respond to Prince Ali’s remarks.
