Gianni Infantino is exploring a plan to sell a share of the FIFA World Cup to private investors, in a move that has prompted an unusually fierce public rebuke from UEFA.
According to information reported by The Times, the FIFA president has been involved in secret negotiations over a potential deal that would see stakes in football’s most prestigious competition ceded to private capital.
The discussions are said to have involved figures with close links to the US administration and former president Donald Trump, and could be worth several tens of millions of euros. The proposal would represent an unprecedented shift in the commercial structure of the World Cup and has reignited debate over the extent to which football’s flagship events should be monetised.
UEFA issues stinging response
UEFA responded within hours of the revelations by issuing a sharply worded statement, accusing FIFA of crossing a moral and governance red line.
The European governing body condemned what it called an “unprecedented ethical drift” and urged every part of the game – including national associations, clubs, players and fans – to oppose the project.
In its statement, UEFA said:
“cela franchit une ligne que les institutions dirigeantes du football ne devraient jamais franchir. Cette situation menace directement la stabilite et l’equite du football mondial. L’ame et la gouvernance du football ne sont pas des actifs a negocier, surtout avec une transparence nulle quant a qui en tire un profit financier. Aucun de nous n’est proprietaire du football. Ce n’est pas a la FIFA de le vendre.”
By directly questioning whether FIFA has the legitimacy to treat the World Cup as an asset that can be partially sold, UEFA has openly challenged the authority of world football’s governing body.
Growing rift between FIFA and UEFA
The confrontation marks a clear escalation in tensions between the two most powerful organisations in the global game, whose relationship has already been strained by recent disputes over calendar congestion, competition formats and commercial rights.
UEFA’s intervention formalises a public rupture with FIFA over who ultimately has the right to decide how football’s most valuable competition is controlled and financed.
The controversy comes at a time when financial speculation around elite tournaments is intensifying, with investors increasingly attracted by the guaranteed global audiences and huge broadcasting revenues generated by major events.
For critics of the proposed World Cup deal, the episode underlines wider concerns that football’s governance is being shaped less by sporting priorities and more by the interests of private finance.
Uncertain future for global governance
The claims about Infantino’s plans, combined with UEFA’s uncompromising response, have pushed the governance of the world game into what observers see as a period of unusual instability.
While no formal agreement has been announced and FIFA has not publicly detailed any proposal, the idea of selling a stake in the World Cup has already raised fundamental questions about who “owns” football’s biggest tournament and how far commercialisation should be allowed to go.
With the spectre of large-scale financial speculation now hanging over the sport’s top competitions, the balance of power in global football – and the model on which its showpiece events are run – appears to be entering a turbulent new phase.
