A two-function minimax theorem (Q5917846)

In this paper, using a recent result of B. Ricceri, we establish the following result: Theorem. Let \(E\) be an infinite-dimensional Hausdorff topological vector space, \(X \subseteq E\) a convex set with non-empty interior, \(K \subseteq E\) a relatively compact set, \(Y \subseteq \mathbb{R}\) a compact interval, and \(f,g,h\) three real functions on \(X \times Y\). Assume that: (a) \(f(x,.)\) is quasi-concave in \(Y\) for each \(x \in X \backslash K\), and either \(f\) is upper semicontinuous in \((X \backslash K) \times Y\) or \(f(.,y)\) is lower semicontinuous in \(X \backslash K\) for each \(y \in Y\); (b) \(g(x,.)\) is upper semicontinuous in \(Y\) for each \(x \in X \backslash K\), and \(g(.,y)\) is upper semicontinuous and quasi-convex in \(X\) for each \(y \in Y\); (c) \(h(x,.)\) is upper semicontinuous in \(Y\) for each \(x \in X \backslash K\), and \(h(.,y)\) is \(\alpha\)-sup-compact in \(X\) with respect to \(E\) for each \(y \in Y\), where \(\alpha = \sup_{v \in Y} \inf_{u \in X} g(u,v)\); (d) \(f(x,y) \leq \max \{g (x,y), h(x,y)\}\) for each \((x,y) \in (X \backslash K) \times Y\). Then, for every relatively compact set \(H \subseteq E\), one has \[ \inf_{x \in X \backslash H} \sup_{y \in Y} f(x,y) \leq \sup_{y \in X} \inf_{x \in X} g(x,y). \] Apparently, the above result seems to be the first two-function minimax theorem where the condition \(f \leq g\) is not assumed.