Nicholas McGeehan: FIFA Boss Exposed Selling Football To Political Powers

I had the pleasure of meeting Nick McGeehan, one of the most avid human rights campaigners and corruption investigators, who cofounded FairSquare to address the growing issue of sports corruption and “sports washing” within sporting governing bodies, particularly within FIFA.

Our discussion is centred on the growing influence of politics and money in sport, especially through FIFA and the World Cup. The conversation began with a reflection on the England vs Argentina match. Still, it quickly shifted into a broader critique of how football governing bodies can influence outcomes off the pitch through power, patronage, and public relations.

A key theme was that modern sports and their governing bodies are no longer insulated from politics and are now being used to project influence, normalise questionable relationships, human rights abuses and distract from deeper structural issues.

Nick explained that FIFA began as a relatively small organisation meant to organise international football, but then it transformed in the 1970s and beyond into a commercial giant driven by sponsorships, broadcasting rights, and huge revenue flows.

That shift created the conditions for corruption, because money became tied to power. Nick highlighted how FIFA’s development fund model gives equal payments to member associations without meaningful oversight, creating a patronage system where financial dependence discourages accountability.

We explored the corruption scandals that brought down Sepp Blatter and the rise of Gianni Infantino. Nick argued that while FIFA introduced reforms after the 2015 scandal, the underlying governance structure never changed. Instead, it became more polished on the surface while remaining deeply dysfunctional underneath and much more political.

The current president, Gianni Infantino, was described as a leader who accumulated more power, became more politically entangled, and used FIFA’s platform to align with authoritarian figures and politically powerful allies, including Trump and Saudi interests.

The other major thread was accountability and reform. Nick described FairSquare’s complaints to FIFA’s ethics committee and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) over Infantino’s political behaviour, including his public support for Trump and the “Peace Prize” episode.

Our conversation stressed that corruption in sport is not just a football issue, but it also reflects a broader failure of regulation across sports. We discussed that the solution is not to rely on fans or athletes alone, but to push for effective governance, regulations, and political pressure.

Join the conversation now and let us know what you think FIFA is doing to football. Has it damaged it permanently, from what we have witnessed with the 2026 World Cup?