Infantino denies UEFA paid off his alleged lover

Gianni Infantino, the president of FIFA, has vehemently refuted claims that UEFA gave a former employe a six-figure severance payout due to an alleged relationship between the two during his tenure at the organization that oversees European football.

The Daily Telegraph revealed the accusations as Infantino is under increasing heat for his management of FIFA and his recently shelved plan to sell private investors shares in the organization's business operations.

A representative for Infantino called the allegations "categorically untrue" and stated that no complaints had been made over the FIFA president's behaviour while he was employed at UEFA.

However, UEFA denied that the payment was related to any wrongdoing, even if it acknowledged that the woman at the center of the accusations received a parting payment.

The organization went on to say that since then, its rules have been tightened and are now in line with what is expected of a contemporary international sports organization.

From 2000 until his election as FIFA president in 2016, Infantino worked for UEFA, rising to the position of secretary general in 2009.

The accusations come at a challenging moment for Infantino, who is being criticised for his leadership by a number of football authorities.

His plans to create FIFA Forward Enterprise, a commercial subsidiary that would have permitted private investors to purchase minority shares in FIFA's main tournaments, such as the World Cup, were recently shelved.

UEFA and a number of national associations opposed the initiative, and European football officials threatened to take legal action.

After getting support from senior FIFA officials during a meeting in Morocco, Infantino later admitted that mistakes had been made but continued to hold the position.

The football community has also been split by his stance. He has received backing from the Confederation of African Football and Conmebol in South America, as well as from the football associations of Argentina and Mexico, who are co-hosts of the World Cup.