How Infantino’s plan to sell off the World Cup could fall apart

Gianni Infantino has put his own re-election as Fifa president at risk with his controversial “gamble” to sell off stakes in the World Cup, The i Paper has been told. The move has sparked outrage and could backfire by creating a push against Infantino’s bid for another four-year term from 2027, say football insiders and whistleblowers. Infantino may have planned the money-spinning venture for some time, say Fifa experts – arguing that it explains why he “buddied up” so closely with Donald Trump. Shorts European nations are said to be willing to boycott the World Cup if Fifa pushes on with plans, with Uefa’s 55 associations holding an emergency meeting on Thursday to discuss how to respond. The European football body has accused Fifa of “attempting to sell the soul of football”, while the English FA has said it is worried by the “apparent substance” of the plan. Concacaf – representing North and Central American associations – said it was “deeply concerned” not to have been consulted. The Asian Football Confederation also said it was “disappointed” by the lack of discussion. But neither body has yet condemned the substance of the idea. Plan ‘may backfire on Infantino’ Miguel Maduro, a former chair of Fifa’s own governance committee, told The i Paper he was “absolutely” against the plan to sell stakes to investors. Maduro, who was pushed out by Fifa in 2017 after voicing dissent, said it “may” backfire on Infantino by triggering more support against his re-election next year. “It may. I’m not sure, but it may,” he said. “What I’m afraid is that this will simply bring down Infantino and bring down this project, but will not change the structures of governance in football. “If we will simply be replacing Infantino with someone else, without changing the culture of governance in football, then sooner or later we will see the same pattern of actions taking place.” Trump lobbied Infantino over the red card shown to US striker Folarin Balogun in the World Cup – Balogun’s one-match ban was suspended (Photo: Al Drago/Bloomberg) Maduro said he was “not shocked” by Infantino’s move, given the close ties between the Fifa boss and Trump. The US President revealed he had lobbied Infantino to suspend US striker Folarin Balogun’s automatic one-match ban – breaking precedents to let the star play. On Tuesday, Fifa announced that Thrive Eternal – a company linked to the extended Trump family – would lead the proposed investor group. It is run by Joshua Kushner, younger brother of Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law. “Before recent events, that [sell-off plan] would have been more shocking and surprising to me,” said Maduro. “But it’s less so once we have seen how Infantino and Trump have behaved together.” Members must resist ‘temptation’, says whistleblower Fifa whistleblower Bonita Mersiades – who previously raised concerns about malfeasance in the World Cup bidding process – told The i Paper that she hoped member associations all over the world would reject Infantino’s “really bad idea”. The Australian whistleblower was sacked from her senior role at Football Australia in 2010, then suffered abuse in 2014 when it was revealed she’d assisted an investigation into Fifa. “The World Cup is not a commercial asset,” said Mersiades, who worked on her country’s bid to host the World Cup in 2018 and 2022. Infantino is thought to have told Fifa’s 211 member associations that each would receive £30m if they agree to the plan by 19 September. An overall funding package worth £7.5bn will become available if it gets approved. Infantino is hoping to be re-elected by those 211 members next year for a fourth term in charge. Mersiades said some countries might find it “tempting” to be “offered so much money”. But she rejected the idea that smaller, less wealthy federations in Asia and Africa could potentially be more supportive. “I think it’s a wrong generalisation,” she said. “I would hope members around the world reject it by seeing that see their true purpose is to support those who bring value to football – the players, fans and volunteers.” Mersiades suggested that both Fifa’s sell-off plan and Infantino’s own future was uncertain. “He clearly doesn’t think it will backfire,” she added. “He sees money as being the root of everything, and he’s counting on members thinking the same. So it’s a big test for everyone.” Why Infantino wanted to ‘keep Trump close’ Nick McGeehan, director of sports ethics group FairSquare, which is behind the Reboot Fifa campaign, said the plan was “dangerous and absurd”. The ethics expert suspects that Infantino may have been planning the move for some time. “It may explain why he went to such lengths to keep Trump close,” he said. “It’s not inconceivable all the support for Trump was laying the groundwork for [US] support for this.” The Fifa chief’s power “rests on getting vast amount of money to member associations” which is supposed to be about grassroots development, said McGeehan. But there is not enough oversight on how money is spent, he added. “By pumping even more money into members, this proposal has the potential to turbocharge that patronage, and encourage members to vote for Infantino.” Football associations in Asia and Africa, which tend to be least wealthy, are the most likely to agree to it, McGeehan warned. “Infantino will hope countries dependent on the money will go along with it.” Infantino is trying to win re-election for a fourth term in 2027 (Photo: Dustin Satloff/Fifa via Getty) Despite Concacaf’s statement of concern, the campaigner fears some South American nations may also be reluctant to oppose Infantino as strongly as Uefa. “South American federations are wealthier [than in Africa and Asia], but just as compromised.” McGeehan thinks the planned sell-off could still backfire on Infantino if public and political outrage can put pressure on football federations around the world. “I think he may have underestimated the outrage. It’s the most serious development in modern football history. So I think he’s vulnerable now, and it could backfire.” Re-election no longer a certainty Alan Tomlinson, a professor at the University of Brighton and author of What is Fifa For?, said he also thought Infantino might have been “planning it for a while”. He added: “It might explain why he buddied up with Trump, because the US company [Thrive Eternal] is involved and getting US support will be vital.” The move could “partly be about winning votes [for Infantino’s re-election]. I think countries in Asia and Africa might still go along with this. That’s the gamble he has taken.” “It will depend on whether enough in Uefa and Concacaf really push against it,” the Fifa expert added – claiming that the gamble put his re-election in 2027 at risk for the first time. “There could be enough outrage that it brings enough people against Infantino’s leadership, and they rally behind someone else. Until now, his re-election looked a certainty.” Uefa expected to discuss boycott Uefa remains firmly opposed and its 55 members will discuss Fifa’s plan at an emergency meeting on Thursday. The European football body launched a fresh attack on it on Wednesday, saying: “Fifa cannot continue to use our sport to enrich themselves and their friends.” Some European nations are willing to threaten a boycott of the World Cup if Infantino does not back down, according to Sky News. Hans-Joachim Watzke, vice-president of the German Football Association, told Kicker magazine that Fifa’s plan was an “absolute attack on football”. And the president of Spain’s La Liga, Javier Tebas, accused Infantino of attempting to buy votes. “It seems like an electoral campaign financed with the future of football,” he said. However, the Czech football federation chief has suggested he will back the sell-off plan, cooling hopes of an united front in Europe. David Trunda told Sky News he could see the “pragmatic benefits” of the money-raising venture. New Prime Minister Andy Burnham has strongly opposed the plan, saying the World Cup is “not a product” and that football “belongs to the fans” rather than investors. Die-hard England supporters have threatened to boycott future World Cups. John Gallivan, who organises England fan meet-ups, said: “I fully support Uefa walking away from Fifa if that’s what it takes to protect the future of European football.” Fifa has argued that the plan would help get more funding to grassroots football and grow the men’s and women’s game around the world. “Fifa exists to support sustainable, inclusive development in every corner of the world,” said Infantino. Fifa, Uefa, the FA and other member associations were contacted for comment.