Lebanon gives citizenship to Fifa chief Gianni Infantino

Gianni Infantino, the head of Fifa, is to be given Lebanese citizenship, the country’s football association (LFA) announced on Tuesday. 

Infantino has a Lebanese wife, Lina al-Ashkar, who accompanied him on a two-day trip to Lebanon this week. 

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun granted citizenship to the 55-year-old in a gesture which the LFA said affirmed “Lebanon’s appreciation for his role in developing the game and his continued support for Lebanese football”. 

Infantino told LBCI: “I don’t have it yet, but soon. I feel very good, I feel very proud, I feel very happy. And I’m Lebanese since many, many years already, so it’s good that we formalise this as well.”

According to Lebanese law, Lebanese women cannot pass citizenship to their spouses or children. The 1925 law, which dates back to the French mandate era, allows men to pass citizenship to foreign spouses. 

"After obtaining Lebanese citizenship, I was honored to meet President Joseph Aoun. I love Lebanon - half of me is Lebanese. We will work on building a stadium with international standards, which we will offer to Lebanon and the Lebanese Football Association,” Infantino told MTV. 

Hashem Haidar, the head of the LFA, said that the new stadium project would be fully funded by Fifa. 

“I feel that there is one thing that we need here in Lebanon, which is a 'state-of-the-art' football stadium. A stadium where the national team can play its home games, a stadium where Lebanon will be proud and will be happy,” the soon-to-be Lebanese citizen said. 

Following his two-day visit, Infantino will travel to Qatar, where he will watch an Arab Cup qualifier match between Lebanon and Sudan. 

Infantino, who has been Fifa president since 2016, has close ties with US President Donald Trump. The US was awarded the tournament with Mexico and Canada during Trump's first term. 

He has faced scrutiny for Fifa’s handling of Israel’s genocide in Gaza.

Amid calls for Israel to be suspended from Fifa and Uefa, Infantino said that the governing body promoted peace and unity and could not solve political issues.