Gianni Infantino’s proposal to sell chunks of the World Cup to private investors has sensationally collapsed, with the Fifa president admitting the project “has created divisions of a nature that are no longer of the interest of the objective”, amid widespread anger globally.
The plan had caused ructions within football around the world, leading Uefa to threaten a boycott of future Fifa tournaments if it was not shelved. Other confederations had also come out in opposition while one of Infantino’s senior advisors, Carlos Cordeiro, resigned on Friday in protest at the scheme. The Fifa chief operating officer, Kevin Lamour, had also aimed a scathing rebuke at Infantino’s “serious lack of respect” in seeking to force it through with minimal consultation.
It has led Infantino to back down amid speculation the venture capital firm Thrive Capital, which was leading the proposed investor group, had also expressed doubts after a week that threatened to tear the sport apart. Infantino’s previously secure presidency has come under severe pressure and it remains to be seen whether his climbdown will be enough to save his position.
“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 said in a statement.
“Our purpose has always been – and will always be – to unite and improve. As a result, this proposal will not proceed. 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.”
The proposed Fifa Forward Enterprise (FFE), unveiled earlier this week, had been intended to raise hundreds of millions of dollars by selling a significant stake in the commercial rights of the men’s and women’s World Cups, and the Club World Cup, to investors. It promised an increase in distribution to “over $10bn” (£7.5bn) being spread back among Fifa’s 211 member associations. A deadline of 19 September had been set for member associations to sign up to the scheme, which offered an optional $20m (£14.8m) to those participating.
But the plan was roundly rejected by European countries, who agreed upon a boycott at an emergency meeting on Thursday. Concacaf and the Asian Football Confederation, the latter with a stinging statement on Friday morning, had also made their distaste clear. While Infantino retains a stronghold in Africa he was left with nowhere to go, the numbers to push through the plan in any credible form having eluded him.
Attention will now turn to Infantino’s future given the scale of the internal revolt within Fifa and the severe hit his standing has taken elsewhere. It is unlikely his withdrawal of the plan will sway member associations who had already become deeply disenchanted by his handling of the Folarin Balogun affair, which unfolded three weeks previously during the World Cup. But some observers have wondered whether recourse to Fifa’s reserves, which stand at around $4bn (£2.97bn), for the promised FFE cash would convince enough federations to save his skin.
Uefa and other confederations have stepped up their search for candidates to run against Infantino in next year’s Fifa election, in which he had been expected to comfortably win a fourth term. Their appetite is unlikely to change and time will tell whether Infantino can turn his fortunes around after an episode that has had a shattering impact on his credibility.
