FIFA President Gianni Infantino canceled a planned speech at the Milken Hamptons Dialogues, a gathering for wealthy financiers, citing a legal threat from UEFA over a proposed deal with billionaire Joshua Kushner. Sources indicated Infantino withdrew from the event once he learned that UEFA, European soccer's governing body, intended to subpoena Kushner and FIFA's U.S. offices.
A FIFA spokesperson stated that Infantino's cancellation was not related to the legal proceedings, asserting that the FIFA president was in Asia and had informed organizers earlier in the week that he could not attend.
UEFA filed a request with a Manhattan federal judge on Thursday seeking permission to compel Kushner and his venture capital firm, Thrive Capital, to provide documents and give depositions. The organization also requested access to FIFA documents in Florida. These legal actions are part of UEFA's effort to gather evidence for a potential criminal case in Switzerland related to the collapsed $20 billion plan to sell a stake in FIFA to Thrive Capital.
The Post previously reported that FIFA had abandoned the deal with Kushner's firm. Kushner is the brother-in-law of former President Donald Trump. UEFA alleges that Infantino and Kushner discussed the deal's concept for nearly a year before a terms sheet was finalized. According to UEFA's court filing, the proposal's origins trace back to July 2025, when Kushner reportedly approached former Liberty Media CEO Greg Maffei.
UEFA claims the proposal was developed through a flawed process, with FIFA's governing bodies and senior executives allegedly kept unaware while Infantino and a select group of advisors worked on it. The plan became public on July 28 when Infantino announced a new FIFA subsidiary intended to raise approximately $4.2 billion from investors, implying a valuation of $20 billion.
The proposed transaction faced immediate opposition from FIFA's member nations, with all 55 UEFA member nations threatening to boycott FIFA competitions unless the deal was scrapped. Other continental confederations, including CONCACAF and the Asian Football Confederation, also opposed the process, and backlash spread within FIFA itself.
Infantino has been traveling internationally, reportedly using a private jet provided by Qatar, to meet with national federations and bolster his political standing. As of Friday, he was in Doha, Qatar. Flight records indicate the aircraft he has been using has made recent trips, including one to Doha on August 15, 2026.
Kushner has recently been in headlines for his involvement in a potential acquisition of the Los Angeles Lakers. UEFA is seeking evidence for a possible criminal case in Switzerland, utilizing U.S. legal discovery processes. Both UEFA and FIFA are headquartered in Switzerland.
The Milken Hamptons Dialogues is a smaller version of the Milken Institute Global Conference, typically held annually in Los Angeles. Michael Milken, the organizer of the conference, pleaded guilty to securities and tax fraud charges in 1990.