Gianni Infantino‘s proposal to introduce private equity into the World Cup has triggered massive backlash, drawing fierce opposition not only from fans but also from major regional confederations. Following UEFA‘s initial pushback against the FIFA president, U.S. Soccer and CONCACAF have formally rejected the initiative, potentially wiping out up to 90 votes Infantino needs to pass the venture.
FIFA officially unveiled plans this week for the FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE), a corporate spin-off entity designed to oversee commercial and operational delivery for premier tournaments, including the World Cup. The proposal involves selling up to a 20% minority stake to private investors, valuing the new venture at roughly $20 billion. The move met immediate resistance from UEFA, whose 55 member associations signaled an outright boycott of FIFA competitions, including future men’s and women’s World Cups, should the project proceed.
CONCACAF, the governing body representing North America, Central America, and the Caribbean, issued a scathing statement Thursday formally rejecting the global federation’s proposal.
Echoing CONCACAF‘s stance, the U.S. Soccer Federation released a joint statement and amplified the message across its official X account, aligning itself directly with regional leadership. “U.S. Soccer stands with Concacaf and its members,” the federation posted.
In its sharp rebuke, CONCACAF emphasized that its member federations remain united “by the love of our game” as an “organization founded on service, transparent governance, and the long-term stewardship of football“. The statement served as a direct salvo toward Zurich: “History has shown FIFA and the football family what happens when the custodians of the game lose sight of these values“.
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Gianni Infantino’s World Cup sale plan sparks global revolt beyond UEFA as CONCACAF and AFC make their positions known
CONCACAF now becomes the second major confederation to publicly oppose Infantino and the FFE initiative alongside UEFA. However, unlike its European counterpart, North America’s governing body stopped short of issuing an explicit boycott threat regarding upcoming FIFA tournaments.
How many votes does Infantino need?
With UEFA and CONCACAF formally closing ranks against the proposal, the block of opposing member associations has grown to 90. Still, if Infantino can hold the line across the remaining confederations, the FIFA Forward Enterprise project could still secure enough support to pass.
FIFA currently comprises 211 member associations, meaning Infantino requires a simple majority of 106 votes to ratify the proposal. To officially block the project, the UEFA-CONCACAF opposition bloc needs to recruit at least 15 additional votes from rival confederations.
The voting breakdown across FIFA’s 211 member associations by confederation is structured as follows:
- UEFA (Europe): 55 votes
- CAF (Africa): 54 votes
- AFC (Asia): 46 votes
- CONCACAF (North America, Central America, Caribbean): 35 votes
- OFC (Oceania): 11 votes
- CONMEBOL (South America): 10 votes
While CONCACAF represents 41 total member associations, only 35 hold full FIFA voting privileges. Attention now turns to CAF, the AFC, OFC, and CONMEBOL, whose member federations have yet to release official statements or reveal how they intend to vote on the contentious proposal.
