FIFA President Gianni Infantino has met the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan, Shavkat Mirziyoyev, after officially launching the FIFA Arena project in the country and visiting the new flagship stadium that will stage games at the FIFA U-20 World Cup 2027™.

Following his September 2025 visit when he received Uzbekistan’s highest state honour for foreign citizens, the Order of Dustlik, from President Mirziyoyev, Mr Infantino met the head of state again in the capital, Tashkent.

“I was honoured to meet with the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan, Shavkat Mirziyoyev, to speak about my experience visiting his beautiful country and thank him for supporting FIFA’s football development activities,” said Mr Infantino, who was joined on the visit by Uzbekistan Sports Minister Adkham Ikramov, Uzbekistan Football Association (UFA) President Bakhodir Kurbanov, UFA’s First Vice-President Ravshan Irmatov, andFIFA Chief Member Associations Officer Elkhan Mammadov.

“President Mirziyoyev’s leadership has been key as Uzbekistan made its historic debut at this year’s FIFA World Cup™ and will be at the centre of world football when they co-host next year’s FIFA U-20 World Cup alongside Azerbaijan. “We are grateful to President Mirziyoyev, the government, Uzbekistan Sports Minister Adkham Ikramov, Uzbekistan Football Association led by its President Bakhodir Kurbanov, and all those who continue to ensure young girls and boys in Uzbekistan can fulfil their football dreams.”

After being welcomed back to the country earlier in the day by Mr Ikramov and Mr Irmatov, the FIFA delegation proceeded to Secondary School No. 90 in Tashkent’s Chilanzar District to inaugurate Uzbekistan’s first FIFA Arena mini-pitch.

Joined by UFA representatives and former players, Mr Infantino handed out commemorative gifts to the dozens of children present, many of whom will benefit from the facility as the project continues to work towards its goal of establishing at least 1,000 mini-pitches globally by 2031.

“This mini-pitch will certainly provide a beautiful, safe, and secure environment for children to play football and feel the joy only our game can bring,” said Mr Infantino, who highlighted Uzbekistan’s participation in the upcoming FIFA U-15 World Cup and Festival™. “I was also delighted to see how excited everyone was for this special occasion, including the U-15 boys who will represent the nation in Azerbaijan next month.”

The first Central Asian country to host a FIFA tournament when it staged the FIFA Futsal World Cup 2024™, Uzbekistan’s football landscape is developing rapidly as it also hosted the FIFA Series 2026™ in March before the senior men’s national team made their first appearance on the global stage.

The senior women’s national team will hope to take the next step to emulating their male counterparts when they participate in the preliminary phase of the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2027™ Play-Off Tournament in November and December.

Mr Infantino saw some of Uzbek football’s highlights in the Museum of the Ministry of Sports before heading to the UFA’s Dustlik National Training Center, which has seen four pitches constructed, the stands and other facilities on the main pitch revamped and floodlights installed thanks to FIFA Forward funding.

He met representatives of the Ministry of Sports and UFA President Kurbanov as well as members of the senior men’s national team and head coach and FIFA World Cup 2006™ winner Fabio Cannavaro.

“While taking a tour of the modern facilities that serve as the epicentre of all football activities here, we spoke about current and future projects under the FIFA Forward programme. This positive conversation reaffirms my belief that under the guidance of the current leadership, football will continue its incredible growth in Uzbekistan,” Mr Infantino said of discussions with Mr Kurbanov. “It was also delightful to meet the first group of Uzbek players, led by my friend and coach Fabio Cannavaro, who represented this proud nation at this year’s FIFA World Cup. They are pioneers who will inspire generations to represent their great nation and achieve success on the world stage.”

Mr Infantino also toured the New Tashkent Central Football Stadium. An ambitious project located in the suburb named “New Tashkent”, the venue will be a cornerstone of the FIFA U-20 World Cup 2027, which Uzbekistan will co-host with Azerbaijan.

Construction started in November 2025 and when completed, it will leave a 55,000-capacity all-seater stadium as the centrepiece of a complex that includes three training pitches, state-of-the-art facilities for players, fans and the media and excellent transport links.

With the FIFA Talent Development Scheme running effectively – Uzbekistan has qualified for the last three FIFA U-17 World Cups™ – since it was launched in 2024 and FIFA Football for Schools bringing the beautiful game to schoolchildren across the country since 2023, the future and present of football in Uzbekistan is bright.

Mr Infantino noted that continued collaboration between the national government, the UFA and FIFA would continue to bear fruit, saying: “I am certain that with their support, we can work together to achieve even more success in football and inspire young girls and boys all over this beautiful country.”