Power. Money. Football. In That Order

The ongoing madness of Gianni Infantino has only grown to another level. He has put forth a plan that would see FIFA sell a percentage of World Cup stakes to private investors. He has offered a huge incentive for countries to agree to the plan and, at the same time, have blackmailed them into accepting the offer.

There are obvious objections to the proposed plan.

FIFA president Gianni Infantino is facing one of the biggest challenges of his tenure after plans to reshape the governing body’s commercial future sparked fierce opposition across Europe. While the proposal has been presented as a way to generate billions in new revenue for football; it has also triggered concerns about the sport’s governance. This leaves the future of the World Cup at the center of an escalating dispute.

The main criticism going into the 2026 World Cup, held in the US, Canada and Mexico, was pricing. From tickets to transport links, football fans on median salaries around the world complained they were being priced out of their beloved game.

FIFA also faced a backlash over hydration breaks midway through each half. Critics said they were money-making opportunities for broadcasters which disrupted the traditional flow of matches.

A major row has broken out between football's governing bodies over FIFA's plans to seek private investment in the World Cup, with UEFA reacting angrily and European nations ready to discuss a potential boycott.

FIFA announced on Tuesday that it was seeking to launch FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE), which would bring together the sale of FIFA's commercial rights - including broadcasting, sponsorship, ticketing and licensing - with the operational delivery of its tournaments.

Under the proposal, FIFA would raise up to $4.2bn (£3.1bn) from external investors through the sale of minority, non-controlling stakes in FFE; which it says would be valued at around $20bn (£15bn).

The governing body says its plans - which need approval from member associations - could deliver more than $10bn in "football development funding" over the next four years.

UEFA will boycott FIFA tournaments if Gianni Infantino goes ahead with his proposal to sell off a stake in the World Cup. The decision was taken at an emergency meeting of all of UEFA's 55 member associations on Thursday afternoon, with a 55-0 vote.

In a statement released on Thursday afternoon, UEFA said: "We unanimously and unequivocally reject FIFA's proposal to transfer ownership interests in the World Cup and other FIFA competitions to private investors."

The boycott - the first time a confederation has done so for a FIFA tournament - should effectively kill off Infantino's proposal as investors would be unlikely to put money into tournaments without European teams.

The first test of UEFA's boycott for senior teams will come in October for the 2027 Women's World Cup qualifier play-offs, which England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland are scheduled to play in.Before that, the U20 Women's World Cup starts in September, with England due to participate in Poland.

Everyone at UEFA's two-hour meeting on Thursday spoke out against Infantino's sell-off plan, including FA chair and FIFA vice president Debbie Hewitt and FA chief executive Mark Bullingham.

CONCACAF, which covers North and Central America, is holding its own meeting, with an update expected on Thursday night.

Following UEFA's boycott decision, an FA spokesperson said: "We stand shoulder to shoulder with our European colleagues and fully support the collective view. We oppose FIFA's plans. The FIFA World Cup belongs to football and always will."

The Scottish FA said they "agree unequivocally with concerns raised by all members over the manner in which these proposals have been issued, and the deadline set, without a full consultation process or consideration to good governance."

The Premier League - who are a founding member of the European Leagues - backed UEFA's stance, saying it "fully supports this statement."

Meanwhile, Culture Secretary, Lisa Nandy, said of UEFA's boycott: "This is a principled decision that we strongly support. Football belongs to the fans, not billionaire investors. Enough is enough. It's time to take a stand to protect our game."

Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, voiced his criticism on Tuesday evening, saying on X: "Football does not belong to investors. It belongs to the people who fill the stands and who stand on the touchline week in, week out, rain or shine."

On Wednesday morning, an FA spokeswoman added: "We were completely unaware of this proposal and have no substantive details, including what the proposition actually is, and what conditions are attached.

"Based on the limited information, we are deeply concerned about the lack of process and governance to get to this point, and the apparent substance and principles involved. When the proposal is shared in the full and transparent way now promised by FIFA, we will make our views clear, and comment further."

Relations between UEFA and FIFA were already under severe strain, with UEFA president, Aleksander Ceferin, not attending the World Cup final in protest at a series of FIFA governance issues, including its handling of the Folarin Balogun case.

The way the plans emerged, as well as the proposal itself, provoked fresh fury on Tuesday, with FIFA not raising the landmark strategy during meetings with football associations in New York on the eve of the World Cup final.

It is understood the English Football Association (FA) was completely unaware of the plans - first reported in the Financial Times and The Times.

UEFA said in a statement after those reports emerged that the "soul and governance of football are not assets to trade".

"This crosses a line that football's governing institutions should never cross. UEFA takes it extremely seriously. So should every National Football Association.

"So should every stakeholder: leagues, clubs, players, supporters, governments and everyone who cares about the future of the game. The soul and governance of football are not assets to trade - especially with zero transparency as to who gains financially. None of us are the owners of football. It isnot FIFA's to sell."

FIFA confirmed that JP Morgan is acting as financial adviser on the project, with Thrive Capital - whose chief executive is Josh Kushner, brother of Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared - expected to lead the proposed investor group.

FIFA insists it would retain sole control over football governance, competitions, the international match calendar and all sporting and regulatory decisions, with any outside investment in a FIFA subsidiary rather than FIFA itself.

The additional funding, it says, would allow it to increase payments to its 211 member associations through its FIFA Forward programme, raising funding from the currently budgeted $8m to $20m per association for the 2027-2030 cycle.

Member associations could also access up to $20m in optional one-off funding for major projects through a new FIFA Fast Forward Programme.

FIFA is a not-for-profit organisation owned by the 211 associations that make up its membership. As an association of associations, it enjoys a tax-free status in Switzerland where it is based.

Its revenue for the 2022-26 cycle is expected to be $15bn (£112.8bn), the majority of which comes from TV rights, sponsorship and ticket and hospitality sales from the men's World Cup this summer.

As opposition intensified, reports emerged that European Football Associations are considering boycotting future FIFA World Cup tournaments if the governing body proceeds with the proposed sale.

making UEFA’s participation crucial to the success of any World Cup.

The threat is also backed by precedent. In 2021, FIFA abandoned plans to stage the World Cup every two years after UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin warned that European nations would refuse to participate.

It isn’t just football fans and UEFA executives who want to give Gianni Infantino the red card for his plan to sell off 20% of the World Cup to a privately backed commercial enterprise.

The FIFA president is also in the crosshairs of the House of Representatives Judiciary Committee in Washington and ranking Democrat member Jamie Raskin. The reason? Infantino’s plan, which is backed by Joshua Kushner’s investment fund, has, for some observers, president Trump’s sticky fingers all over it.

FIFA president Gianni Infantino called to appear before Congress over Trump ties

Raskin told Politico FIFA was "going directly into business with the Trump family," before making reference to the peace prize Infantino awarded the president in December and FIFA’s use of office space in Trump Tower, New York.

"Apparently the fake Peace Prize and giant lease with Trump Tower weren’t enough – now Infantino performs a kickback hat-trick by pursuing a multibillion-dollar deal with Jared Kushner’s brother to sell ownership stakes in the World Cup to private investors."

As is often the case with Trump, the Kushner family is at the centre of any tangled web he weaves. Jared and Joshua’s father, Charles Kushner, convicted of tax evasion, witness tampering, illegal campaign contributions and sentenced to two years in prison, is Trump’s ambassador to France though he speaks no French. He was pardoned by Trump in 2020.

Jared, married to Trump’s daughter Ivanka, is a Special Envoy for Peace and helped negotiate the Islamabad Memorandum ceasefire with Iran, which has now seemingly collapsed. He was also the man charged with fulfilling Trump’s pledge of bringing the Russia-Ukraine war to an end within 24 hours of him assuming the presidency.

At the heart of this and once again keeping influence very much within the family is Jared’s younger brother, Joshua, who has established various private investment funds including Thrive Eternal, who will be lead investor in FIFA Forward Enterprise, the commercial spin-off Infantino is proposing to sell shares in.

With Jared having divested his shares in Thrive Capital (the parent company of Thrive Eternal) in 2017 when taking on a role in Trump’s first administration, the familial ties seem especially tight around this project, as intimated by Raskin, who has already summoned Infantino to attend the House judiciary committee.

He has also requested FIFA documents related to any gifts and benefits provided to Trump and details of the visitor logs for Fifa’s office space in Trump Tower.

Given Trump’s boasting that his direct line to Infantino persuaded FIFA to suspend the USA’s Folarin Balogun’s red card for the World Cup last-16 game against Belgium – the USA lost 4-1 – it is an unfortunate look for Infantino that the extended Trump family, through marriage, will be leading the sale of the century, the handing over of substantial control of the World Cup. Some critics say even a 20% minority stake will effectively be a controlling stake if Infantino remains in charge without accountability.

The proposal will be discussed by the FIFA Council later in 2026. FIFA hasn't yet announced an exact date. If the Council approves the proposal, it will then go to the FIFA Congress in Morocco in March 2027; where FIFA's 211 member associations are expected to vote on it. A majority vote would be required for approval.

To me, this is purely a selfish act aiming for Trump's continued interference in football after he leaves the White House when his second term is finished. Infantino is just thinking about himself and his bestie. I wouldn't be surprised if they are seen in public holding hands while walking in public.

Infantino should be kicked to the curb if this fails. With the various stunts that he's pulled lately, he should be barred from all footballing activities.