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Kushner blames football politics for collapse of FIFA investment plan
🇩🇰 Denmark /Sports

Kushner blames football politics for collapse of FIFA investment plan

From Berlingske · () Danish

Translated from Danish and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

Newswire From a news agency Under investigation
  • Investor Joshua Kushner blamed international football’s political dynamics for the collapse of FIFA Forward Enterprise, a proposed $20 billion commercial investment vehicle.
  • UEFA threatened to boycott the World Cup if the plan passed, while Concacaf and the AFC also criticized it; FIFA abandoned the proposal on Aug. 1.
  • UEFA is gathering evidence for a possible criminal case in Switzerland and has sought documents and testimony from Kushner and his company, although they are not expected to be sued.

Joshua Kushner says he underestimated the political battles surrounding international football when he joined a plan that aimed to attract private investment to FIFA events.

Kushner’s company, Thrive Capital, worked on the proposed FIFA Forward Enterprise for months and reportedly led the investment process. The plan would have sold stakes in a new commercial subsidiary valued at $20 billion, covering competitions including the World Cup.

Even though we supported the intentions behind FFE, we underestimated the political dynamics in international football and the means certain actors were willing to use.

— Joshua KushnerKushner explained why he believed the FIFA investment plan attracted such strong opposition.

The proposal drew sharp opposition. UEFA threatened to boycott the World Cup if it passed, while Concacaf and the Asian Football Confederation also criticized it. FIFA announced on Aug. 1 that it had abandoned the plan after the backlash.

If we had known what this would develop into, we would not have entered it.

— Joshua KushnerKushner said he would not have joined the project had he known how the controversy would unfold.

“Even though we supported the intentions behind FFE, we underestimated the political dynamics in international football and the means certain actors were willing to use,” Kushner wrote in an email to AFP. He added, “If we had known what this would develop into, we would not have entered it.”

UEFA has also called for FIFA President Gianni Infantino to resign. Legal documents reviewed by AFP say UEFA is collecting evidence for a possible criminal case in Switzerland, where both organizations are based. U.S. media have reported that UEFA asked a New York judge to compel Kushner and Thrive Capital to provide documents and submit to questioning. Kushner and the company are not expected to face a lawsuit. Kushner, the brother of Jared Kushner, is also a key investor in the ongoing $12.5 billion purchase of the Los Angeles Lakers.

It was an idea that each member association was supposed to vote on, not a demand or a decision.

— Joshua KushnerKushner defended the proposed FIFA plan in his correspondence with AFP.
About this summary

Originally published by Berlingske in Danish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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