FIFA president Gianni Infantino has withdrawn his controversial proposal to sell stakes in the World Cup, following intense opposition from within the governing body and a threatened boycott by European national teams. In a statement released late Friday, Infantino confirmed that the proposal "will not proceed."
"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," he said.
U-Turn After Widespread Opposition
The plan, announced earlier in the week, involved creating a $20 billion subsidiary to manage the commercial rights of FIFA's competitions, including the men's and women's World Cups and Club World Cups. Investors would have owned 20% of the new entity, with a New York-based investment firm founded by Joshua Kushner, the younger brother of Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner, serving as the anchor investor.
The proposal drew immediate criticism from member associations, with opposition intensifying daily. By Thursday, UEFA's 55 member nations had unanimously agreed to boycott the World Cup and all other FIFA competitions to demonstrate their displeasure. The governing body for European football declared that "some things are simply too important to sell."
FIFA Officials Break Ranks
The pressure mounted further on Friday when two senior FIFA figures publicly condemned the initiative. Carlos Cordeiro, who had served as a presidential adviser and represented FIFA on the White House Task Force for the World Cup, resigned in protest. A former Goldman Sachs banker, Cordeiro urged other senior staff to speak out, stating: "I cannot stand by while FIFA considers selling a stake in the World Cup."
Hours later, FIFA's chief operating officer Kevin Lamour issued a statement to The Associated Press, accusing Infantino of keeping staff in the dark during months of planning. Lamour, a long-time colleague of Infantino at both FIFA and UEFA, wrote that "it is the project of one person" and insisted it must not continue. He added that football's political leaders must now "ask themselves the right questions and make the right decisions."
Regional Bodies Join Opposition
The Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football (Concacaf) and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) also voiced their opposition, joining UEFA in rejecting the plan. UEFA labelled the proposal as "a profound failure of leadership" and "an abdication of FIFA's duty as the custodian of world football."
What Was Proposed
Infantino had initially pitched the idea of spinning off FIFA's commercial businesses into a separate $20 billion company, with a 20% stake offered to private investors. The goal, according to the president, was to raise capital to grow the sport globally, especially in developing nations. However, critics saw the move as a dangerous concession of FIFA's control over its flagship tournaments and a potential conflict of interest given the involvement of the Kushner-linked investment firm.
In his Friday statement, Infantino acknowledged the hostility the plan had generated and signalled a return to consultation. "Moving forward, my intent is to bring all interested parties back together in the coming days and weeks in the spirit of shared interest in our game, and with the objective to continue growing football everywhere, particularly in those countries that mostly need our support," he said.
