FIFA Abandons Plan to Sell World Cup Stake to Private Investors
FIFA has officially announced it will not proceed with the sale of a 20% stake in its World Cup management unit following intense backlash from major football associations.
FIFA announced on Friday that it will not proceed with the proposal to sell a stake in the World Cup to external investors, after the move encountered fierce opposition from its member associations.
FIFA's plan was to raise up to 4.2 billion dollars by selling about 20% of the shares in a new unit that would manage FIFA events, including the World Cup, based on a valuation of 20 billion dollars. The main investor intended for the deal was an American investment firm founded by Joshua Kushner, the brother of Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of US President Donald Trump.
The proposal, first published on Tuesday, met with staunch opposition from the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), which threatened a boycott of all tournaments held by the world federation and accused FIFA of selling the "soul" of the sport. Later, the associations of North, Central America and the Caribbean (CONCACAF) and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) also joined the opposition.
"After listening carefully to all opinions, it became clear that the project created divisions of such a kind that, regardless of the level of support for it, they no longer serve the goal set from the beginning. Our goal was always - and will always remain - to unite and improve. As a result, this proposal will not be implemented," said FIFA President Gianni Infantino in a statement.
Earlier on Friday, Infantino's senior advisor, Carlos Cordeiro, resigned with immediate effect, calling the plan a "bad deal for football." FIFA's Chief Operating Officer (COO), Kevin Lamour, said that the staff had been "misled" by Infantino, and described the proposal as a "one-man project." UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham told reporters on Friday that Infantino is "the wrong person to lead the organization."
