FIFA has abandoned a plan to sell a minority stake in its commercial rights to private investors, following widespread criticism from regional football bodies.
FIFA president Gianni Infantino said on Saturday that consultations had made clear the project had created divisions that, regardless of the level of support, no longer served its original purpose. He said the proposal would not go ahead, as the organisation’s goal had always been to unite and develop football.
The announcement came after UEFA, European football’s governing body, threatened a full boycott of the World Cup if FIFA continued with the plan. CONCACAF, the confederation covering North and Central America and the Caribbean, had also rejected the proposal on July 30, accusing FIFA of crossing a red line.
The scheme, known as FIFA Forward Enterprise, would have managed FIFA’s commercial rights, including those for the World Cup and the Club World Cup. FIFA had planned to raise up to $4.2 billion by selling a minority stake in a vehicle valued at around $20 billion, with proceeds directed toward football development through a new FIFA Fast Forward programme. JP Morgan Chase was set to serve as financial adviser, and Thrive Capital, led by Joshua Kushner, brother-in-law of US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, was to lead the investor group.
UEFA welcomed the reversal, calling it a victory for football, but said the task of rebuilding trust in FIFA was only beginning.
