FIFA backs down and will not sell part of the World Cup

BarcelonaGianni Infantino backtracks on his proposal to create a subsidiary to market World Cup shares. "After listening to all opinions, it has become clear that the project has created divisions in such a way that, regardless of support, they are no longer in the interest of the initially set objective," explains the FIFA president in a statement distributed through social networks.

The top leader had to backtrack after receiving criticism in recent days. UEFA threatened to boycott all FIFA competitions and not participate in the next World Cups, while internally the situation was also not pleasant. On Friday, Carlos Cordeiro, Infantino's right-hand man until then, resigned from his advisory position and strongly criticized the FIFA president.

CONCACAF and the Asian Confederation also joined UEFA. All three showed their rejection of the proposal. Meanwhile, Conmebol (South America) announced the start of a "consultation process" among its members. In a statement titled "football comes first", they asked FIFA for more information about the proposal presented. "We understand that the development of football requires commercial and financial decisions. However, these decisions must always be at the service of football and never above its essence", they said in the statement.

All of this has forced Infantino to backtrack. "Our purpose has always been, and always will be, to unite and improve." The proposal from the top leader of world football aimed to create a subsidiary — under the name FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE) — to take over commercial operations and the organization of events such as the World Cup. In addition, it also announced the intention to sell 20% of this new subsidiary.

For Infantino's initiative to move forward, the support of the majority of the 211 federations that make up FIFA was needed. To convince them, the institution was offering 53 million dollars to those federations that accepted the proposal, according to The Times. "The FIFA Forward Enterprise project aimed to lay the groundwork for further strengthening FIFA's member associations and our global sport, especially in those countries where support is most needed," the president defends himself in the statement.

Despite backtracking on the initial proposal, Infantino has hinted that he will try to carry out other initiatives again. "Looking ahead, my intention is to bring together all stakeholders in the coming days and weeks, in a spirit of common interest for our sport and with the aim of continuing to promote football everywhere, especially in those countries that need our support the most," he concludes.