FIFA scraps plans for private investment into World Cup

FIFA President Gianni Infantino announced Saturday that the organization will not proceed with plans to sell stakes in a company intended to manage the commercial and operational aspects of its competitions, including the men's and women's World Cups. The decision comes after significant opposition from continental confederations.

“

The FIFA Forward Enterprise project was intended to provide a basis for further strengthening our FIFA Member Associations and our sport worldwide, especially in those countries where support is most needed.

UEFA, representing European nations, had insisted its member associations would boycott FIFA events if the plan moved forward. The confederations of North, Central America, and the Caribbean (CONCACAF) also rejected the proposal. The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) called for an urgent review of FIFA's governance, while the South American Football Confederation (CONMEBOL) requested further information.

“

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.

Infantino stated that the FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE) project was designed to strengthen FIFA Member Associations and the sport globally, particularly in underserved regions. He emphasized that the plan was always contingent on majority support from member associations and consultation with stakeholders. However, Infantino acknowledged that the project had created divisions that were no longer in the organization's best interest.

“

As a result, this proposal will not proceed.

"As a result, this proposal will not proceed," Infantino said in a statement. He added that his intent is to reconvene all interested parties to continue growing football worldwide. The controversy also led to the resignation of FIFA's senior advisor Carlos Cordeiro, and another official described the plan as "a project of one person."

“

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.