July 31 (Reuters) - Opposition mounted on Friday to FIFA's plan to sell a stake in the World Cup to private investors, after a senior adviser to the organisation's President Gianni Infantino resigned in protest and a report said the proposal had been scrapped.
The New York Post, citing four sources, reported that FIFA's plan to raise up to $4.2 billion by selling about a 20% stake in a new unit, valuing it at $20 billion, had collapsed after an open revolt by soccer officials around the world.
Reuters
could not independently confirm the report. FIFA, world soccer's governing body, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Earlier on Friday, Infantino's senior adviser Carlos Cordeiro resigned with immediate effect, calling the plan "a bad deal for football".
Cordeiro, who was appointed in 2021 by Infantino to help shape FIFA's future, said the body was "mortgaging football's future without any compelling justification.
"It is a bad deal for FIFA's Member Associations, a bad deal for football, and a bad deal for the long-term future of the game," Cordeiro said in a statement.
A former banker and ex-U.S. Soccer Federation vice president, Cordeiro added that he had no involvement in the proposal and opposed it "unequivocally".
Meanwhile, FIFA's Chief Operating Officer Kevin Lamour said staff were "deceived" by Infantino, describing the proposal as a "project of one person".
"Our mission ... is to serve football. Not to serve the personal interests of a person who, unfortunately, believes he embodies FIFA when he is supposed to be at its service," he wrote in a statement shared with the Associated Press.
FIFA TO PROCEED
Despite the growing opposition, Switzerland-based FIFA said "incorrect media reports" this week had disrupted its planned consultation process but that it would press on with putting the proposal in front of its 211 national football associations.
"We will proceed with this consultation process to ensure that each MA (Member Association) has the ability to express its vote based on facts," it said in a statement issued in the middle of the European night.
FIFA has proposed creating a $20-billion subsidiary, FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE), to run the World Cup and its other events, with a stake of up to 20% to be offered to external investors.
Thrive Eternal, a fund run by Thrive Capital, founded by Joshua Kushner, was expected to lead the proposed investor group, FIFA said. Joshua is the brother of Jared Kushner, U.S. President Donald Trump's son-in-law.
Trump, however, said he did not speak with Infantino about FIFA offering stakes to external investors despite having a close relationship after the U.S. co-hosted the World Cup.
British Prime Minister Andy Burnham, who was critical of FIFA's plan when it was announced earlier this week, told reporters on Friday that Infantino was "the wrong man to lead the organisation".
Infantino, 56, is up for re-election next year and North American football chief Victor Montagliani is reportedly looking to challenge him for the FIFA presidency.
UEFA LEADS OPPOSITION TO FIFA PLAN
European soccer's governing body, UEFA, has led the widespread opposition to the proposal, accusing FIFA of putting the sport's "soul" up for sale.
On Thursday, UEFA's 55 member nations voted unanimously to boycott all FIFA tournaments, less than two weeks after Spain were crowned world champions.
FIFA's next major event is the women's Under-20 World Cup in September. Hosts Poland said on Friday they had not received any information about the potential withdrawal of any team from the tournament.
"Nobody is selling football. This is not something FIFA would ever entertain," FIFA said in Friday's statement.
"Everyone has the right to express their opposition and to seek further clarification but no single entity can claim to represent all 211 MAs (Member Associations) around the world.
"Each MA should be allowed to review the proposal and have a say in shaping their own future. These are the democratic principles of FIFA."
South American soccer governing body CONMEBOL said on Friday it had requested more information from FIFA on the proposal and would continue to analyse it before taking a position.
"We recognise that the development of football requires commercial and financial decisions. However, such decisions must always serve football and never take precedence over its very essence," CONMEBOL said in a statement.
CONCACAF, the regional federation for North America, Central America and the Caribbean, rejected the proposal during a meeting on Thursday but the 41-member body did not follow UEFA with a boycott threat.
The Asian Football Confederation, which has 47 members, issued a statement on Friday saying it "stands in solidarity" with UEFA and CONCACAF, but also stopped short of threatening a boycott.
The AFC, which has not historically been as frequent or vehement a critic of FIFA as its European counterpart UEFA, questioned the viability of the proposal and raised doubts about FIFA's decision-making processes in a thinly veiled attack on Infantino.
"FOOTBALL IS NOT FOR SALE"
Stuart Dykes, the director of European and Institutional Affairs at Football Supporters Europe, said such decisions could not be taken behind closed doors by a small group of people.
"The national associations should be demanding proper governance, proper consultation, proper stakeholder involvement," Dykes told Reuters.
"Football is not for sale. It's a social good. Its value is created by the fans and the players ... That value is not for FIFA to extract in the interest of private investors."
Infantino said in a letter to all member associations that they would receive $40 million each if they agreed to FIFA's proposal by September 19.
On Friday, FIFA said it would not go ahead with the plan without the support of the majority of its member associations.
"These principles underpin the FFE proposal: unprecedented development funding, truly global ownership of the commercial opportunities of our sport, and full self-determination through a democratic process for all MAs," FIFA said.
UEFA, CONCACAF and the AFC combined have 143 associations, well over half of FIFA's 211 members.
(Reporting by Ian Ransom, Aadi Nair and Rohith Nair; Additional reporting by Lucy Thomson, Nick Mulvenney, Kuba Stezycki, Stine Jacobsen, Janina Nuno Rios and Rory Carroll; Editing by Kevin Liffey, Clare Fallon and Ken Ferris)
