UEFA Threatens FIFA with Legal Action Over Plan to Sell Stake in the World Cup — The Athletic
UEFA is considering filing a lawsuit against FIFA over the now-canceled plan to sell a stake in the commercial rights to the World Cup and other tournaments to private investors.
According to The Athletic, the European Football Association has sent separate letters to FIFA and the investment fund Thrive Eternal. In the documents, UEFA warned of possible lawsuits, arbitration proceedings, and appeals to regulatory authorities.
In addition, the organization demanded that all documentation related to the preparation of the deal be preserved, including financial models, valuations, legal opinions, materials from negotiations with investors, and internal correspondence.
Earlier, FIFA President Gianni Infantino proposed creating a subsidiary, FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE), to which the commercial rights to host tournaments—including the World Cup—were to be transferred. It was anticipated that approximately 20% of the company would be sold to a group of investors led by the Thrive Eternal fund for $4.2 billion.
The fund is headed by Joshua Kushner—the brother of Jared Kushner, son-in-law of U.S. President Donald Trump.
The initiative drew criticism from UEFA, which threatened to boycott FIFA tournaments involving its 55 national associations. CONCACAF and the Asian Football Confederation also opposed the plan. Ultimately, Gianni Infantino abandoned the idea.
This was reported by The Athletic.
As a reminder, Gianni Infantino, president of the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA), officially announced the cancellation of plans to sell a stake in the management of the World Cup to private investors. This decision was made following sharp criticism from the soccer community and threats of a mass boycott by national federations.
European soccer associations will discuss this week the possibility of boycotting the World Cup if FIFA President Gianni Infantino proceeds with plans to create a new commercial structure and bring private investors into it.
FIFA plans to change the governance model for its major soccer tournaments. The organization is creating a new company to which it will transfer the commercial rights to the World Cups, and it intends to sell a portion of its shares to investors. One of the main contenders to participate in the project is said to be the fund of American billionaire Joshua Kushner—the brother of Ivanka Trump’s husband.
