Infantino's travels have brought fresh criticism.

Gianni Infantino’s near-constant presence at World Cup 2026 matches has become a talking point, with critics drawing attention to the distances he is covering across North America.

The FIFA president has been filmed at stadiums from Seattle to Miami and Toronto to Mexico City, often moving between games on a private Gulfstream G650 supplied by Qatar Airways, one of the tournament sponsors. Reports said he was seen at 10 stadiums in the first seven days of the competition and continued the same pattern in week two.

The tournament itself has already faced criticism for its expanded 48-team format, the number of third-placed teams that progress, awkward kick-off times for fans in Europe and Asia, and the long travel between host cities. Some critics have also raised concerns about FIFA’s closeness to the United States government and the use of planned drink breaks that have been treated as ad slots.

Supporters of Infantino argue that attending matches is part of his job and that air travel is the only practical way to follow a World Cup spread across such a vast area. However, the scale of the journeys has prompted fresh questions over whether the schedule can be repeated at World Cup 2030, which will be held across six countries on three continents.