The news surprised on the edge of 2024: the general secretary of Argentine soccer players added (FAA), Sergio Marchihe was appointed president of the International Professional Footballers Union, FIFPRO. Before the first month of 2025, the Turco He met four hours with the head of the FIFA, Gianni Infantinowho spread the encounter in his personal account of Instagram.
The Football Mandamás pondered the conclave in diplomatic terms and the Argentine highlighted the recovery of the dialogue after two years without shared agenda. Among the euphemisms used by both, The agenda did not detach that fed an encounter that extended during four hours.
The last meeting between FIFA and FIFPRO had been in December 2022, in Doha. There, in the middle of the World Cup, a protocol of agreement was signed to strengthen collaboration between both organizations. Then, the Spanish David Aganzo He presided over the guild. The rubric of that document there were no new meetings, although some crosses.
In October 2024, for example, the International Players Union accused FIFA for “The unilateral imposition of the party calendar violates the right of competence of the European Union and constitutes a dominant position abuse”. A month later, they completed the arguments with a study that indicates that professional football does not meet “Required security standards, violating legal and global frameworks.”
The conflict is clear: the guild considers that the expansion of the European calendar affects the well -being of the players by “High labor demands, international trips and sleep interruptions”which are not considered when preparing the fixture. However, neither Infantino in his social networks nor Marchi in the information disseminated upon his return referred to the problem.
“I was pleased to welcome the new president of FIFPRO, Sergio Marchi, a man at the service of football and soccer players, to the house of FIFA in Zurich to talk with him and his colleagues in FIFPRO about the opportunity to strengthen our cooperation and create synergies for the benefit of players around the world “infantino highlighted in an English text.
Almost simultaneously, from the Marchi environment they released their statements that, although more concise, they are in the same tune. “It was a good meeting since it had a constructive dialogue between two important institutions. Both parties will work for the future to solve the problems that are coming and to generate better conditions for soccer players,”distinguished him Turco In a statement.
Marchi was received with his delegation, made up of the president of the European Division of FIFPRO, David Terrierand the executive director of the Association of Professional Footballers of England, Maheta Molango.
“The players are at the center of FIFA considerations, and our goal is to collaborate with FIFPRO in a spirit of respect and mutual support. FIFA greatly values the opinion and voice of the players within our institution, and we will work closely with President Marchi and his team to protect players and football ”closed Infantino.
Although they did not announce the common agenda that the union and the FIFA will have, nor is there for the next meeting between the holders of both entities, A new meeting is expected before the end of the year. Meanwhile, Argentine soccer players will have the front of Marchi, as has it since 1997.