FIFA withdraws World Cup privatisation plan after UEFA boycott threat and adviser resignation

Gianni Infantino announced on Friday, 31 July 2026 that FIFA will no longer pursue the creation of FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE), a subsidiary designed to commercialise the World Cup and other tournaments. The decision came after a wave of opposition from several continental confederations, a threatened boycott by UEFA, and the public resignation of Infantino's own senior adviser.

The proposal and its price tag

FIFA unveiled the plan on Wednesday, 29 July. The new entity would bundle the organisation's commercial rights (broadcasting, sponsorship, ticketing, licensing and event operations) and sell a minority stake of about 20% to private investors. Internal documents, seen by The Times and the Financial Times, valued FFE at roughly 20 billion dollars, meaning the stake would have raised around 4 billion dollars. JP Morgan was cited as adviser, while Thrive Capital, the firm of Joshua Kushner (brother of Jared Kushner, Donald Trump's son-in-law), was reportedly ready to select the investors. FIFA told its 211 member associations they had just over 50 days to decide whether to accept 53 million dollars each in return for backing the deal.

After listening carefully to all opinions, it has become clear that the project has created divisions of such a nature that, regardless of the level of support, it no longer serves the objective initially set out.

UEFA leads the boycott threat

On Thursday, 30 July, UEFA's 55 national federations voted unanimously to refuse participation in any FIFA competition if the plan went ahead, a move that would have hollowed out a World Cup stripped of European teams. Concacaf and the Asian Football Confederation also rejected the proposal, while Conmebol began a "consultation process" among its members.

The World Cup cannot be treated as a purely commercial asset. We reject FIFA's proposal to transfer ownership stakes in the World Cup and other FIFA competitions to private investors.

Adviser Cordeiro resigns

Early on Friday, Carlos Cordeiro, a senior adviser to Infantino, resigned with immediate effect. In a statement posted on social media, he called the proposal irresponsible and said he could not remain in his post.

I cannot stand idly by while FIFA considers selling a stake in the World Cup. I want to make clear I have had nothing to do with this proposal and I oppose it unequivocally. It is a bad deal for the member associations, a bad deal for football and a bad deal for the long-term future of the sport.

FIFA blames media before retreating

Hours before Infantino's U-turn, FIFA issued a damage-control statement pushing back against what it called "erroneous information published by the media". It insisted that no football was being sold and that the FFE would remain permanently under FIFA's ownership and control. Each member association would receive 20 million dollars in development funds between 2027 and 2030, plus an additional voluntary 20 million through a Fast Forward programme financed by outside investment, the statement said. But the organisation did not withdraw the proposal at that stage.

Withdrawal and next steps

By Friday evening, Infantino had reversed course. "Our purpose has always been, and always will be, to bring us together and improve," he said in a statement, adding that the proposal would not proceed. He announced plans to bring all stakeholders together in the coming days and weeks "guided by our shared interest in the sport and with the aim of continuing to drive the growth of football everywhere, especially in those countries that need our support most."