Gianni Infantino, president of FIFA, announced on Friday, July 31, that he was abandoning a project to sell part of the organization to outside investors. He said the decision followed intense negative reaction and opposition from football's confederations.
In an official statement posted on social media, Infantino said the project, called FIFA Forward Enterprise, had been designed to build a foundation to strengthen FIFA's member associations and the sport worldwide, especially in countries where support is most needed. He said that from the start it was made clear the plan would only proceed with the backing of a majority of member associations and through a consultation process involving the FIFA Council, the confederations and other stakeholders.
Infantino said that after listening closely to all viewpoints, it became clear the project had created divisions that meant it no longer served the purpose that motivated its creation. He said FIFA's purpose has always been, and will always be, to unite and strengthen, and that as a result the proposal would not go ahead. He said his intention now is to bring all stakeholders back together in the coming days and weeks to keep promoting the growth of football around the world, especially in the countries that need FIFA's support the most.
Confederations opposed the plan
CONMEBOL, South America's governing body, stated its position on the plan on Friday, becoming the last confederation to do so. UEFA, European football's governing body, was the first to criticize the proposal, issuing several statements against the idea and even threatening a boycott if it moved forward.
CONCACAF, covering North and Central America, also rejected the proposal, as did the AFC, the Asian Football Confederation. CAF, the African confederation, and the OFC, representing Oceania, issued statements calling meetings to evaluate FIFA's proposal, similar to CONMEBOL's response.
What was the FIFA Forward Enterprise?
According to FIFA's statement, creating the FIFA Forward Enterprise depended on approval from its member associations. The new subsidiary, majority controlled by FIFA, would have consolidated the organization's commercial operations and its main competitions.
FIFA had projected that each federation would receive $20 million, equivalent to 102 million reais, in the 2027-30 cycle, up from a current quota of about $8 million, or roughly 41 million reais, with gradual growth planned over the following two cycles. In practice, the plan would have meant FIFA privatizing its major tournaments, including the World Cup and the Club World Cup, resulting in more teams, more national squads, more matches and increased revenue for those involved, including Infantino himself.
