Controversies following Infantino leads to planned boycott
The reputation of football's governing body is taking a hit as Gianni Infantino's FIFA leadership is put under scrutiny amid plans to open its commercial operations to private investors.
FIFA has been under fire from different confederations after it unveiled a proposal to create a new commercial subsidiary that would raise up to USD$4.2 billion by selling minority stakes to private investors.
FIFA said that third parties will be invited to make "minority, non-controlling investments" in the subsidiary, which is aimed at expanding football development funding to over USD$10 billion across all 211 Member Associations.
Confederations reject FIFA's proposal
But confederations are pushing back against the plan, which they see as an attempt to transfer ownership interests in the World Cup and other FIFA competitions to private investors.
The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), in rejecting the proposal, stated that its national teams will not participate in any FIFA competition as long as the proposals are on the table.
"The World Cup cannot be treated as an investment product. It is one of football's greatest sporting legacies," UEFA said. "No part of it should ever be surrendered to private investors. The World Cup is not for sale."
UEFA further condemned the secrecy surrounding the proposal, calling it both "irresponsible and indefensible."
"This is not merely a profound failure of leadership, but an abdication of FIFA's duty as the custodian of world football," it added.
Similarly, the Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football (Concacaf) also expressed opposition to FIFA's proposal, as it called for greater transparency and proper governance from FIFA.
"Concacaf and its 41 Member Associations have rejected the proposal," it said in a statement.
It added that it tasked FIFA Council Members with "instructing the FIFA President to ensure that any matter follows the proper governance processes via staff and FIFA Council, in accordance with the FIFA Statutes."
Concacaf's rejection follows a meeting among the presidents of its 41 Member Associations, its President, Council members, and its FIFA Council members.
According to the federation, members expressed deep concerns during the meeting about the lack of due process surrounding FIFA's proposal.
It also called out the absence of any review or approval by the relevant FIFA governing bodies.
'Nobody is selling football'
FIFA, in response to the pushback, maintained that external investment would not mean ceding control or altering its governance structure in any way.
It stressed that the establishment of the subsidiary was aimed at ensuring that all FIFA Member Associations have the opportunity to "take meaningful ownership of the commercial opportunity of football in their respective countries."
"This does not come at the cost of either the spirit or the governance of FIFA or football itself," it said. "Nobody is selling football. This is not something FIFA would ever entertain."
It said it will proceed with a consultation process to ensure that all FIFA Member Associations have the ability to express their vote based on facts.
FIFA's Red Card controvery
The latest controversy facing FIFA's leadership comes after it was recently called out for a deferred one-game suspension against US men's national soccer team player Folarin Balogun during the 2026 World Cup.
Balogun received a red card in the United States' round-of-32 victory against Bosnia and Herzegovina, which would have ruled him out of their round-of-16 match against Belgium. FIFA instead suspended the ban under Article 27 of its Disciplinary Code.
The ban was lifted amid reports that US President Donald Trump called Infantino to request a review of the decision — a call the US president later confirmed.
The US president said he asked FIFA to review the decision because he "didn't think it was a foul."
"I think it [the suspension] would have left a big stain. I can't tell them what to do. I don't believe they made the decision; I believe it was the commission that made the decision. And it was the right decision," Trump said as quoted by the BBC.
FairSquare, a human rights non-profit organisation, has raised Infantino's ties with Trump to the International Olympic Committee (IOC), alleging that FIFA breached rules on political neutrality.
"Gianni Infantino has repeatedly breached the IOC's rules on political neutrality by offering his political support for the President of the United States, Donald Trump," FairSquare said in a statement.
The IOC, however, did not carry out an investigation as its ethics commission concluded that it did not have jurisdiction to investigate, ESPN reported.
