Gianni Infantino has abandoned FIFA’s controversial plan to sell stakes in the World Cup following widespread opposition. Infantino admitted the project had “created divisions” that are “no longer in the interest” of its original objective, before confirming that the proposal will not proceed.
In a statement released late on Friday, the FIFA president said: “Having listened carefully to all the views, it has become clear that the project has created divisions of a nature that, regardless of the level of support, are no longer in the interest of the objective set out in the first place. Our purpose has always been — and will always be — to unite and improve. As a result, this proposal will not proceed.” He added that he intends to bring all interested parties back together in the coming days and weeks in the spirit of shared interest in the game, with the goal of continuing to grow football everywhere, particularly in those countries that most need support.
The plan, announced earlier in the week, aimed to create a new commercial subsidiary called FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE) that would manage the commercial rights and operations of FIFA’s major tournaments, including the men’s and women’s World Cups and the Club World Cup. FIFA sought to sell a minority stake of around 20 percent to private investors, valuing the entity at approximately $20 billion and potentially raising up to $4.2 billion. The lead investor was expected to be a firm linked to Joshua Kushner.
Member associations were offered significant additional development funding—reportedly around $40 million each if they backed the proposal by a mid-September deadline—as an incentive to approve it.
Opposition mounted rapidly from major confederations. UEFA threatened a boycott of FIFA competitions, including future World Cups, arguing that the move put the soul of the game up for sale. CONCACAF and the Asian Football Confederation also rejected the plans. Internal pressure intensified when a senior adviser to Infantino resigned in protest and FIFA’s chief operating officer publicly criticized the initiative as lacking openness. With the required majority support from FIFA’s 211 member associations looking increasingly unattainable, Infantino abandoned the scheme after just a few days of intense backlash.
