UEFA issues scathing response to Infantino and FIFA’s reported plan to sell World Cup stakes: ‘None of us are the owners of football’

The global soccer landscape suffered a massive shockwave following reports that FIFA president Gianni Infantino plans to sell commercial stakes in the World Cup to private investors. The proposal drew immediate, fierce backlash from rival governing bodies, with European confederation UEFA issuing a blistering response: “None of us are the owners of football.”

According to an initial report by The Times‘ Martyn Ziegler, FIFA plans to sell minority equity stakes tied to World Cup commercial rights to private investors. The deal would center on establishing a new commercial subsidiary responsible for managing business and event operations across top men’s and women’s competitions.

Hours after the news broke, FIFA confirmed the project, claiming the objective is to expand global soccer development funding to over $10 billion. As part of the pitch, FIFA offered a sweetened incentive for its 211 Member Associations, providing access to up to $20 million in immediate, one-off capital funding for special projects under the newly established FIFA Fast Forward Program (FFFP).

To execute the plan, soccer’s global governing body created FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE), a controlled subsidiary designed to handle commercial and operational delivery. FIFA insisted it will retain full operational authority over FFE, assuring member nations that outside money will not influence “football governance, competitions, match calendar, and all regulatory and sporting decisions.“

UEFA strongly opposes FIFA’s commercial push

As soon as reports surfaced, UEFA, European soccer’s governing body and Infantino’s primary political opposition, came out in full defiance. Coming off lingering friction surrounding the execution and politics of the 2026 World Cup, the news provoked immediate outrage across the European confederation.

UEFA released an official statement slamming the proposal, delivering an uncompromising message to FIFA: “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 Aleksander Ceferin-led organization concluded by warning against the dangers of privatizing the sport for short-term corporate capital. “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 is not FIFA’s to sell,” the statement concluded.

FIFA defends its independence and governance

As reported by sports journalist Ben Jacobs, FIFA aims to raise up to $4.2 billion in capital and has already approached Josh Kushner’s Thrive Capital as well as American investment banking titan J.P. Morgan as key anchor partners. While any final proposal requires formal approval from the 211 Member Associations during a consultation phase, FIFA maintains that its institutional independence remains intact.

In its statement addressing the external investment strategy, FIFA sought to downplay concerns over corporate influence. “The FIFA President and the FIFA administration have a duty to control the development of this project. Outside investors will have only a minority stake in FFE and will not play any operational role. Equally, they are investing in a subsidiary of FIFA, and not in FIFA itself. For FIFA, nothing changes,” the organization stated.