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New Zealand Police have confirmed they were requested to provide a police escort for FIFA president Gianni Infantino during the FIFA Women’s World Cup, but the request was declined.
In a statement police said the request was declined “after assessing it against standard operating procedures”. As this was an “operational matter”, police said they would not comment further on the request.
FIFA declined to comment, but Stuff understands its standard practice is to request police escorts prior to major events starting.
Lars Baron/Getty Images
Gianni Infantino with New Zealand prime minister Chris Hipkins at the quarterfinal between Spain and the Netherlands in Wellington last Friday.
Infantino has split his time between both host nations – Aotearoa and Australia – and has visited Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) members on a private jet. He visited New Caledonia on Tuesday after previously visiting Fiji, Cook Islands, Samoa, American Samoa, Tahiti, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu and the Solomon Islands. He became the first FIFA president to visit those nations.
Each of those nations will also receive NZ$3.25 million this year to spend on projects, including pitch and facility upgrades and football administration. The money has come from the FIFA Forward programme.
Infantino has also visited each host city in New Zealand – Auckland, Hamilton, Wellington and Dunedin – and was photographed with Prime Minister Chris Hipkins at the Football Ferns’ opening game against Norway and again at the quarterfinal between Spain and the Netherlands in Wellington last Friday.
Fifa
FIFA president Gianni Infantino with an All Blacks jersey presented to him by Ian Foster.
Infantino was at Eden Park for Tuesday’s night’s sold-out semifinal between Spain and Sweden.
He also swapped a rugby jersey and football with All Blacks coach Ian Foster, whose daughter Michaela Foster’s World Cup was blighted by injury.
The United States, Canada and Mexico will host the next (men’s) football world cup in 2026. Host city Seattle last week released information about its host city contract – as reported by Business in Vancouver – including that police escorts will be provided to the FIFA president, heads of state, international dignitaries, FIFA officials, guests, teams and match officials.
A police escort may have been helpful for the Football Ferns in their opening game against Norway. On Tuesday Ferns co-captain Ali Riley said the team got stuck in Auckland traffic on the way to Eden Park, and thought her prayers for a police escort had been answered when she heard a siren blaring in the distance, only for a single police car to whizz past the bus headed for an unrelated job. The team made it just in time for only 13 minutes to warm up.
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