Posted in:
FIFA should formalize on June 10, 2021 the transfer of part of its headquarters from Zurich to Paris. It is the Hôtel de la Marine, opposite the Place de la Concorde, which Emmanuel Macron will open on Thursday morning after long renovations, and which will soon welcome about a hundred FIFA staff. This step will have a great relationship with Africa…
It’s a homecoming looming with part of FIFA relocating to Paris. Founded in Zurich (Switzerland) since 1935, FIFA will return, at least in part, to the city in which it was born, having been founded in Paris in 1904, just a few hundred meters from Place de la Concorde.
More air links with Africa
Why this return to Paris? In the setting of FIFA, it is mainly about practical reasons. The French capital will bring football’s parent company closer to the African Confederations.
At a time when, under the leadership of Gianni Infantino, the links between FIFA and CAF, the Confederation of African Football, are increasingly close, this Parisian branch will greatly facilitate exchanges, thanks to the numerous air links with Africa. A much larger number anyway than Zurich.
And then, this return to Paris also responds to a common desire of Gianni Infantino and Emmanuel Macron to defend Francophonie within FIFA.