FIFA responds to UEFA's threat: "No one is selling football"

In a statement, the entity led by Gianni Infantino denied that the project represents a sale of football and stated that the eventual creation of the FIFA Forward Enterprise, called FFE, will depend on an open consultation with the 211 national federations.

According to FIFA, the discussion was hampered by the dissemination of information that the entity considers incorrect. The project, according to the organization, would allow federations to participate in the commercial opportunities generated by football in their respective countries, without changing the entity's governance structure.

“Nobody is selling football,” said FIFA, adding that it would never consider giving up control of the sport.

The entity also argued that no confederation can speak on behalf of all 211 member federations. In FIFA's assessment, each association must have the right to analyze the proposal and decide individually whether it wishes to support it.

Project foresees company valued at US$ 20 billion

The proposal envisages the creation of a company responsible for commercial operations and the organization of FIFA tournaments. The new company would be valued at approximately US$20 billion and could have a minority stake of up to 20% negotiated with external investors.

FIFA would remain in majority control of the company and maintains that sporting and institutional decisions would remain under its responsibility.

According to the model presented to the federations, each association would initially receive US$20 million. Added to the resources provided by the FIFA Forward program, the transfers could reach US$40 million per federation during the next cycle.

The entity states that adherence would be voluntary and that the proposal could still be modified, approved or rejected by the federations.

If it fails to obtain the support of the majority of members, FIFA guarantees that the FFE will not be created and that its current commercial structure will remain unchanged.

UEFA threatens to abandon FIFA competitions

FIFA's reaction came after UEFA announced that its 55 federations are willing to boycott the competitions of football's governing body if the project goes ahead. The measure could affect national team and club tournaments, including the 2027 women's and 2030 men's World Cups.

The European confederation demands that the proposal be withdrawn and that FIFA provide guarantees that it will not allow private participation in the governance of football or in the control of its competitions.

In a statement, UEFA stated that it does not intend to give legitimacy to a model that, in its opinion, places football's heritage in the hands of investors.

The entity led by Aleksander Ceferin also criticized the conduct of the process, alleging a lack of transparency, little time for analysis and the absence of a broader debate before the project was presented.

Concacaf rejects proposal

Concacaf, responsible for football in North America, Central America and the Caribbean, also took a stance against the creation of the new company.

After a meeting with its 41 federations, the confederation declared that the proposal did not go through adequate governance procedures and that no competent FIFA body had formally analyzed or approved the plan.

For these reasons, Concacaf rejected the project and asked its representatives on the FIFA Council to discuss other ways of using the entity's financial reserves to increase investments in football development.

Despite the rejection, the confederation did not announce adherence to the boycott proposed by UEFA.

Infantino sets deadline for federations

Gianni Infantino sent a letter to the 211 member federations and set September 19 as the deadline for them to take a position on the project.

The period corresponds to 53 days from the submission of the proposal. According to the message, the US$10 billion financial package would be available from January 1, 2027 if the project was approved.

If the federations reject the plan, the model already envisaged by the FIFA Forward program will remain in force, with global investments estimated at US$2.7 billion.

The proposal provoked one of the biggest recent institutional disputes in world football. On the one hand, FIFA maintains that the entry of private capital would increase the resources allocated to federations. On the other, UEFA and Concacaf question the transparency of the process and warn of the risks of transforming the sport's main tournaments into commercial assets partially controlled by investors.

Understand the proposed sale of FIFA shares that generated a UEFA boycott

UEFA had already expressed dissatisfaction with the proposal that considers a share sale plan with negotiation of minority stakes with investors