Gianni Infantino elected new preisdent of FIFA

UEFA General Secretary Gianni Infantino has been elected the new president of FIFA during Friday's extraordinary congress. Infantino will succeed fellow countryman Sepp Blatter, who has been embroiled in corruption allegations and legal troubles. Infantino's closest competitor was Sheikh Salman Bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa of Bahrain, who was defeated in the second round of voting.

Infantino now faces the monumental task of cleaning up an organization that has been riddled with corruption allegations through the year and has seen it's members face charges from the US Justice Department and Swiss Attorney General's Office.

Speaking to the media after his election, Infantino reiterated the importance of fixing FIFA's image and reputation,

FIFA has gone through sad times, moments of crisis, but those times are over...We need to implement the

reform and implement good governance and transparency.

MLS Commissioner Don Garber was the man casting the vote for the United States Soccer Federation at the congress. USSF President Sunil Gulati publicly supported Prince Ali bin Al Hussein of Jordan prior to the elections, but later switched votes to Infantino when it became clear that Al Hussein would not have enough votes to take the presidency.

There is now hope that Infantino can usher in a new era in FIFA, one that is not overcome with corruption and illegal activity. But only time will tell if FIFA can truly change for the better.