UEFA has threatened to boycott FIFA tournaments over plans to sell World Cup rights to investors

The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) has threatened to boycott all tournaments organized under the auspices of FIFA, including the World Cup. All 55 members of the union, including the reigning world champion, the Spanish national team, supported the boycott. The decision was made at an emergency meeting of the organization on July 30.

“Some things are too important to be sold. The World Cup belongs to soccer. It always will. And as long as Europe has a say, it will not be sold,” according to a statement from UEFA.

The call for a boycott was a response to FIFA's proposal to transfer the commercial rights to the world's most popular tournament to a separate company and sell a stake in it to investors.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino unveiled this plan on Tuesday, which came as a complete surprise to most of the soccer world, according to The Wall Street Journal. Most members of the soccer community, including FIFA’s own Executive Committee and the regional confederations, only learned of the plans after the information was leaked to the press on Monday.

The project involves creating a commercial entity called FIFA Forward Enterprise, valued at approximately $20 billion, and attracting investors who will hold about a 20% stake in it. The consortium of potential investors is led by Thrive Capital, a fund run by Joshua Kushner—the brother of Jared Kushner, the U.S. president’s son-in-law. According to a WSJ source, Kushner and Infantino have been discussing this project since at least last year. Negotiations intensified in early 2026, at which time JPMorgan Chase joined the effort.

FIFA claims that establishing a private company is the most effective way to raise capital. FIFA promises each of its 211 member associations up to $40 million in additional funding over the next four years. The federation asserts that private investors will not receive dividends and will be able to profit only by subsequently reselling their shares. Furthermore, FIFA assures that shareholders will not be able to influence sporting decisions.

National associations must declare their support for the project by September 19; otherwise, they risk having their payments from FIFA suspended.

Infantino took the helm of FIFA in 2016 following a corruption scandal and made increasing the organization’s revenue his top priority. The 2026 World Cup in North America generated a record $15 billion—a figure Infantino announced by the time of the final match between Spain and Argentina on July 19. The FIFA president intends to distribute the revenue among national associations. This has earned him strong support outside of Europe, which is particularly important ahead of next year’s election for a third presidential term, the WSJ notes.

This article was AI-translated and verified by a human editor