Is FIFA selling the World Cup? What to know about Gianni Infantino investment plan UEFA says 'crosses a line'

Is FIFA selling the World Cup? What to know about Gianni Infantino investment plan UEFA says ‘crosses a line’ originally appeared on The Sporting News.
Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The 2026 FIFA World Cup was a sensational financial success for FIFA, as the football governing body announced an incredible revenue total of $13 billion for its latest four-year cycle, over a 100% increase from the previous period.

It did not come without controversy. FIFA heavily commercialised its flagship event, vastly increasing ticket prices, introducing a new in-house ticket resale vehicle, and cozying up to the U.S. government throughout the event in North America, all of which sparked significant backlash.

With the 2030 World Cup cycle now under way, FIFA has undertaken the genesis of a new commercial venture, which, on the surface, is set to generate even more cash for the Switzerland-based non-profit.

The investment vehicle, first revealed in reports by Martyn Ziegler of The Times and in the Financial Times and shortly thereafter confirmed by FIFA, has many fans and entities fearful of the direction in which the game of football is heading.

The Sporting News details what this new commercial enterprise is, what it is intended to do, who stands to profit from its creation, and how it will affect the World Cup and other FIFA events moving forward.

Is FIFA selling the World Cup?

FIFA is not selling the World Cup in its most basic terms, but it is selling a “significant minority stake” to investors via a proposed new commercial enterprise, which will have direct access to the inner workings of football’s most famous and globally recognised tournament.

This commercial vehicle will be known as FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE), created by FIFA as a ” controlled subsidiary consolidating FIFA’s commercial and event operations” according to the governing body’s official release.

According to Ziegler’s report, the stake to be sold will be around 20 percent, with investors including banking titans JP Morgan, tech investor Joshua Kushner, and others. The entity will be valued at around $20 billion.

According to FIFA’s release on the topic, FFE could generate an incredible amount of money for the member institutions. They claim it would provide $20 million per member association in immediate funding, plus another $20 million per member for the coming World Cup cycle, with the potential for even more revenue growth. As a designated non-profit organisation, FIFA passes profits to its member associations.

What is FFE, Gianni Infantino’s new FIFA investment plan?

FIFA Forward Enterprise, or FEE, is a new subsidiary FIFA plans to create to house the organisation’s “commercial and event operations.”

According to organisation’s official release, “FIFA would retain sole control of FFE and exclusive authority over football governance, competitions, match calendar, and all regulatory and sporting decisions.”

Investors would be sold a stake in the organisation, presumably with the aim of sharing in the commercial revenues generated from various FIFA tournaments, including the World Cup. They would not have any direct control over the operation of things like FIFA competitions, the governing body says.

This isn’t exactly a new idea in football. Other sports bodies, including the Spanish and French leagues, have made similar moves, spinning out separate commercial entities to bring in capital. Barcelona have also done something similar to earn quick money during the club’s financial crisis.

The Times report claims that “some non-binding agreements setting out the terms of the arrangement have already been signed.” One of those is that FIFA president Infantino could be selected as head of the subsidiary once his term as FIFA president expires. The 56-year-old is slated to stand for re-election in 2027, currently unopposed. If he wins, he would remain in charge until 2031 when he is no longer eligible to run again.

Ziegler’s report suggests that Infantino could be set to earn a salary close to that of NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, which stands at around $64 million per year.

FIFA’s plans must be supported by member associations and approved by the FIFA Council before they can be implemented.

Is Donald Trump involved in FFE?

Donald Trump is not directly involved in FIFA’s proposed new commercial entity, but he does have a relatively close indirect connection.

According to both The Times and Financial Times, Joshua Kushner will be a primary investor in the new venture. Kushner is the younger brother of Jared Kushner, the husband of Donald Trump’s daughter Ivanka and a close Trump ally in the U.S. government.

The Times report states that Josh Kushner is “in talks to lead the deal” through his new Thrive Eternal fund, a permanent capital holding company which invests in “irreplaceable cultural assets.” Thrive Eternal has also agreed to buy a small stake in the San Francisco Giants, a Major League Baseball franchise.

What did FIFA say about FFE?

FIFA released a lengthy statement explaining its public position on why the FIFA Forward Enterprise is being created.

Most notably, FIFA insisted that the deal is structured in such a way that the governing body retains total control over all its assets, warding off concerns that the World Cup and other competitions within the game are “being sold.”

” Any such investors would be selected against clear long-term, governance, and strategic criteria,” FIFA said in its FFE release. “They would represent a geographically diversified group that reflects the global nature of the game, acting as minority, long-term partners that could contribute capital and commercial expertise in support of FIFA’s mission to grow the global game. FIFA would retain sole control of FFE via majority board representation and exclusive authority over football governance, competitions, the international match calendar and all regulatory and sporting decisions.”

FIFA stated that member associations will have final say on whether FFE comes to fruition.

“While FIFA regularly creates subsidiaries for specific ventures unilaterally, FIFA is now engaging the member assocations and the FIFA Council in this instance given its strategic importance,” the release states. “In keeping with the democratic processes of FIFA, the FIFA administration will launch the new structure only if a majority of the member associations decide to support it, as well as approval of the required regulatory updates by the FIFA Council.”

That means that FFE will only be created if the FIFA Council and overall members vote to approve it, indicating it has a few more steps before coming to fruition. However, it’s hard to imagine that Infantino and the FIFA executive structure would come this far without having secured — or at the very least, explored — the proper backing amongst the member associations.

FIFA also disputed Ziegler’s report about Infantino being already tabbed to lead FFE, but left the door open for that eventuality should it come to pass. “This has never been discussed,” FIFA said per the Times report. “However, the FIFA president and the FIFA administration will and must have leading roles in this entity — if approved — to always be in control of any FIFA subsidiary in accordance with FIFA’s statutes and regulations for the benefit of member associations.

“The FIFA president and FIFA administration have a duty to control the development of this project, with outside investors only having a minority stake — and not in FIFA but in a subsidiary of FIFA. For FIFA, nothing changes.”

What did UEFA say about FIFA and FFE?

European governing body UEFA, one of the six regional confederations recognised by FIFA, came out strongly against the plans.

“This crosses a line that football’s governing institutions should never cross. UEFA takes it extremely seriously,” the European organisation said in a statement distributed to the press and released on social media. “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 is not FIFA’s to sell.”

According to Rob Harris of Sky Sports, some member associations, including the English FA were not made aware of this plan to create a FIFA subsidiary, despite having met with FIFA before the World Cup final.