FIFA's plan to attract private investors to the World Cup provokes harsh reactions from UEFA

FIFA President Gianni Infantino is preparing a project to reorganize the commercial activities of the World Cup, which would involve attracting private investors and transforming the competition into a separate commercial structure, according to the British publication The Times. The initiative was harshly criticized by UEFA, which warns that football should not be transformed into an asset intended for financial transactions. According to The Times, the project would involve the establishment of a commercial company dedicated to the World Cup, which Gianni Infantino would lead as commissioner after the end of his mandate at the helm of FIFA, following a model similar to that existing in North American professional leagues, such as the NBA or the NFL.

• Private investors and a company valued at $ 20 billion

According to the cited source, FIFA is analyzing the possibility of selling stakes to private investors. The British publication claims that discussions are already underway with several potential investors, including businessman Joshua Kushner, brother of Jared Kushner, son-in-law of US President Donald Trump, backed by investment bank JP Morgan. At the same time, each of FIFA's 211 national federations would receive a share in the future commercial company, valued at around $20 million, which they could keep or sell. According to information published by The Times, the new company would be valued at around $20 billion, and FIFA plans to sell almost 20% of the capital to an investment fund, which could bring the organization around $4.2 billion.

• UEFA: "The soul and governance of football are not assets intended for trading"

Before FIFA officially presented the project, UEFA publicly criticized the initiative, assessing that it exceeds the limits that football's governing bodies should not cross. "This crosses a line that football's governing bodies should never cross,” UEFA said in a statement. The European body said it was taking the situation "with the utmost seriousness” and stressed that national associations, leagues, clubs, players, fans and public authorities must be involved in the debate on the future of football. "The soul and governance of football are not assets for trading, especially in the face of a complete lack of transparency regarding the financial beneficiaries,” UEFA said, adding that "none of us own football. It is not for FIFA to sell it.”

• FIFA pledges $10 billion in investment for football development

FIFA has officially announced its intention to create the FIFA Forward Enterprise (FEE), which will manage commercial activities and the organisation of competitions, while also attracting external investors. The organization claims that the new structure could generate $10 billion to finance the development of football worldwide. According to FIFA, the institution will retain control of the FEE through a majority on the board of directors and will continue to have exclusive authority over the governance of football, competitions, calendar and regulations.

• French Football Federation calls for more transparency

The president of the French Football Federation (FFF), Philippe Diallo, said that the project raises many questions and that the national federations were not consulted before the initiative was announced. "We learned from a press release about a very important project about which we have no information and which raises many questions, without us, the federations, being involved and without having concrete information,” Diallo told France Inter. He announced that he would talk to the main European federations and UEFA President Aleksander Èeferin to establish a common position. Without joining the criticism leveled at Gianni Infantino in recent days, including over the controversy surrounding the lifting of the suspension of American striker Folarin Balogun after President Donald Trump intervened, Philippe Diallo said he had conveyed to the FIFA chief the need for a more transparent decision-making process.

"Sometimes we learn about certain decisions without having been involved and without having been able to really express our opinion,” the French official said. Diallo added that he was "not a fan of hydration breaks,” believing that they change the nature of the game, and advocated for a decision-making process in which the major European federations are more actively involved.