DOHA, Dec. 16 (Xinhua) -- FIFA president Gianni Infantino has described the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar as the "best ever" and revealed record revenues for football's governing body.
The comments followed a meeting of the FIFA Council in Doha ahead of the World Cup final between Argentina and France on Sunday.
"Football [has] reinforced its unique cohesive power by uniting the world in a spirit of peace and friendship," Infantino told a news conference on Friday.
"For me the World Cup has been a real incredible success on all fronts. The main one... bringing people together, meeting the Arab world, is very important for the future of all of us. But also when it comes to the matches. It has been the best World Cup ever."
He said a decision to host the tournament midway through the European football calendar had been vindicated by the standard of football.
"Playing in November and December has had an impact. We have seen it with the quality of the games," he said.
Infantino also confirmed record revenue of 7.5 billion U.S. dollars from 2018 to 2022, 1 billion dollars more than budgeted.
He added that the figure for the next four-year cycle was expected to reach 11 billion dollars, of which 9.7 billion dollars has been earmarked for football investment.
The FIFA Council approved the allocation of 200 million dollars over the next four years for the Arsene Wenger-led Talent Development Scheme (TDS).
The initiative aims to create a sustainable legacy for long-term player development by helping each member association (MA) reach its full potential, FIFA said in a statement sent to the media earlier on Friday.
"The allocation of funds to the MAs participating in the TDS will follow a tailor-made approach that will take into consideration their specific needs," it said. "These MAs will also benefit from extra solidarity funding, subject to specific criteria." ■
