The letter and its deadline

UEFA general secretary Theodore Theodoridis has written to FIFA general secretary Mattias Grafström with 42 questions, asked on behalf of the European members of the FIFA Council. The letter, dated 19 October, demands written answers and all supporting documents by Monday, 2 November. The questions follow a FIFA Council meeting in Zurich on 15 October, where Council members were asked to submit questions in writing for answers at the next meeting in December. DFB chief Bernd Neuendorf described the answers given in Zurich as thin. Theodoridis argues that the withdrawal of the plan, Infantino's acknowledgement of mistakes and his pledges of governance reform do not explain how the decisions were taken or why the Council was left out at the right stage. He also writes that any refusal to disclose must be justified individually.

“These questions require answers now. They cannot be deferred until the next meeting of the FIFA Council.”

The FFE plan and the Kushner question

The questions return to the Fifa Forward Enterprise plan, which proposed selling a 20 per cent stake in a company running the World Cup and other competitions to private investors for more than four billion dollars. FIFA disclosed the plan in late July, about two weeks after the World Cup final in the United States. In the night to 1 August, Infantino withdrew it after three continental confederations, including UEFA, rejected it. UEFA said in August that it had lost confidence in him over the plan and would back a credible alternative candidate for next year's FIFA presidential election. The letter asks why exclusive lead-investor status went to Joshua Kushner, brother of Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of US President Donald Trump, and how those family links to the Peace Prize winner were weighed for conflicts of interest. It also asks how the valuation was set and why private investment was sought at all.

Balogun, the Peace Prize and Trump

On the Folarin Balogun case, UEFA wants all related documents, including the full written reasons for the suspended one-match ban that let the US striker play in the USMNT's round-of-16 defeat to Belgium. The letter also asks about a call between Infantino and Trump before Balogun's red card was overturned during the tournament. On the Peace Prize, which was awarded to Trump, UEFA asks what role Infantino played in creating the award and whether independent selection procedures or objective criteria were applied. Tagesspiegel reports that UEFA also wants detailed answers on Infantino's personal pay package, on the handling of the disciplinary case during the World Cup and on the operational independence of FIFA's legal, electoral and ethics committees.

FIFA's silence and the calendar ahead

FIFA has not yet responded to the letter, and the BBC reports that it was approached for comment. In September, FIFA accused UEFA of harassing Infantino and of running a misinformation campaign linked to the collapsed World Cup buyout plans. According to Tagesspiegel, UEFA has also asked US federal courts to approve subpoenas forcing the production of documents and sworn statements about the abandoned plan. Infantino apologised for the plan at the Zurich meeting but has not released the documents relating to it. The next dates are 2 November, when UEFA wants its answers, and 18 November, the deadline for candidates to stand against Infantino in the FIFA presidential election.