FIFA points new defiant response to UEFA on plans to boycott World Cup
FIFA have issued a fresh statement insisting that “nobody is selling football” after the UEFA has threatened to boycott any future tournaments
Gianni Infantino is under major fire for his FIFA sale plans(Image: Chris Brunskill/Fantasista/Getty Images)
FIFA have issued a new defiant statement asserting “nobody is selling football” after threats that teams will boycott the World Cup.
The association have stated that despite strong criticism of its plan to launch a consultation on selling stakes in a World Cup commercial entity to private investors, FIFA will not withdraw the plan.
Even though UEFA threatened to boycott the World Cup the consultation period is set to go ahead.
The current winners of the World Cup would be part of the boycott(Image: CameraSport via Getty Images)
UEFA reacted with anger when plans to created FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE) first emerged in media reports in The Times and the Financial Times on Tuesday.
In just days the 55 member associations stated they would boycott the World Cup and not participate in any FIFA tournament until the plan was withdrawn.
FIFA responded to this boycott on Friday: “We have heard the feedback provided by the respective confederations in relation to the proposed establishment of FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE) and would like to address the issues that have surfaced since the initial media reporting on Tuesday.
“We respect the feedback and concern aired in public and reaffirm our commitment to an open and democratic consultation.
”Our planned consultation process was disrupted by incorrect media reports. We will proceed with this consultation process to ensure that each MA has the ability to express its vote based on facts.”
Gianni Infantino is facing a boycott from UEFA, according to reports(Image: FIFA)
The statement continued: “FFE has been proposed solely to ensure that all FIFA Member Associations (MAs) have the opportunity to take meaningful ownership of the commercial opportunity of football in their respective countries, and that this does not come at the cost of either the spirit or the governance of FIFA or football itself.
“Nobody is selling football. This is not something FIFA would ever entertain.”
CONCACAF, the confederation representing 41 nations from North and Central America, along with the Caribbean, also opposed FIFA’s plan, saying it “rejected the proposal”.
FIFA president Gianni Infantino has publicly backed the plan, with an investor group led by Thrive Eternal, founded by Joshua Kushner – the brother of United States President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner – waiting in the wings to secure a minority stake in the new venture.
The boycott would mean England would not compete at the next World Cup(Image: Justin Setterfield, Getty Images)
However it could be argued that the huge returns to national associations is unlikely if all European teams withdraw from tournaments.
European and world leagues are also opposed to the plans – fearing that commercial imperatives will drive FIFA to hold bigger and more frequent tournaments in the future, eating even further into domestic schedules.
UEFA said its opposition to the plan is “unanimous and unequivocal”.
The European football’s governing body stated: “No UEFA national teams will participate in any FIFA competition for so long as these proposals remain alive, unless this proposal has been abandoned in its entirety and binding assurances have been given that FIFA will never again open its governance or competitions to private ownership.”
FIFA’s statement added that “each MA should be allowed to review the proposal and have a say in shaping their own future”.
