Lamour thanks FIFA staff in emotional goodbye after Infantino dispute

Kevin Lamour ended his time at FIFA with an emotional message to staff, but made no mention of president Gianni Infantino after their dispute culminated in the Frenchman’s dismissal.

RMC Sport obtained the farewell email sent by Lamour to employees across the organisation after he was formally informed that his employment had been terminated. Lamour had been one of FIFA’s leading operations officials and had emerged as a prominent opponent of several of Infantino’s recent priorities.

His departure followed his criticism of the FIFA Forward project, which he described last month as “the project of one man”.

Lamour began his message by writing: “Unfortunately, today was my last day at FIFA.” He then thanked FIFA secretary general Mattias Grafstrom, whom he described as the organisation’s number two.

“I would like to thank Mattias for his trust. His mission is not easy, and he is doing everything he can to protect FIFA’s interests. Mattias, I am sorry that I sometimes put you in difficult situations, but thank you for always understanding me, never judging me and supporting me until the end,” Lamour wrote.

He also expressed his gratitude to several colleagues and those working in FIFA’s operations department. Arsene Wenger, FIFA’s football development adviser, received particular praise, with Lamour describing him as “a source of inspiration”.

“You breathe football and live for it without stopping, and that is extremely refreshing,” Lamour added.

Lamour, a French official, thanked his colleagues for the opportunity to develop during his two years at FIFA, while acknowledging that his time in the organisation had not produced the impact he had hoped for.

“Thank you for giving me the opportunity to learn, grow and improve every day over the past two years. I was not able to leave the mark I had hoped to make within this organisation, and I would like to apologise for that. I am sorry if I disappointed some of you. Sometimes, even the best intentions are not enough,” he said.

He also referred to a childhood ambition of experiencing the atmosphere surrounding the World Cup. Lamour said he had been able to fulfil that dream from inside FIFA, thanks to the colleagues he worked alongside.

The former operations official highlighted the support he had received from employees during the final weeks of his time at the organisation.

“Finally, thank you for the hundreds of messages you sent me over the past two weeks. I did not expect that, and they truly touched my heart, more than you can imagine,” he wrote.

Addressing FIFA staff directly, Lamour added: “You are FIFA. Without you, FIFA is nothing.”

The most pointed passage came at the end of the message, where he appeared to refer to the position he had taken in recent days.

“One final point, and it is not the least important: never forget that life is not about doing what is easy, but doing what is right. The overwhelming majority of you understood that and applied it in your work, every day. You have my greetings and my deepest respect,” Lamour wrote.

Despite describing FIFA as being in a difficult period, he ended on an optimistic note.

“FIFA is going through a difficult period, but do not worry. Everything will turn out for the best. And if things are not all right, that means the end has not yet come,” he said.

The striking feature of the farewell message was the complete absence of Infantino’s name. In a lengthy email addressed to FIFA employees, Lamour did not refer to the organisation’s president once, despite the deterioration in their relationship before his dismissal.

The message did include the first name “Gianni”, but that reference was to Gianni Manca, who works in FIFA’s office, rather than Infantino.