Čeferin Takes Aim at Infantino With ‘Emperor’s New Clothes’ Speech

UEFA president Aleksander Čeferin delivered a strongly worded address at the European Football Clubs (EFC) General Assembly, appearing to take aim at FIFA president Gianni Infantino without directly naming him.

Čeferin invoked Hans Christian Andersen’s famous tale The Emperor’s New Clothes to question the gap between the language used by football’s leadership and what he described as the reality facing the sport.

“I call to mind Hans Christian Andersen's The Emperor's New Clothes,” Čeferin said. “In the book an emperor is persuaded he's wearing magnificent clothes, which only the foolish or unfit can't see. His court goes along with it, until a child says all along what everyone can see... the emperor is naked!”

He continued by arguing that “convenient words” cannot change uncomfortable realities, while appearing to criticise recent talk of reform and development in world football.

“World football has heard some very comfortable words recently... like reform and development, but it doesn't change the picture, however big the cheque may be,” he said.

Čeferin then presented a series of hypothetical scenarios involving the secret sale of a club’s “crown jewels” and the creation of an award for a politician, asking how long such situations could continue before a club’s board decided that “enough” was enough.

His strongest message came at the end of the speech.

“No politics or amount of power gives anyone the right to sell football.”

Although Infantino was not mentioned by name, Čeferin’s comments come amid growing tensions over the direction and governance of international football, with European clubs and governing bodies increasingly voicing concerns about decision-making, commercial agreements and the balance of power within the sport.