Fifa President Gianni Infantino has announced the scrapping of a controversial plan to sell stakes in the organization's major competitions, including the World Cups. The decision comes after significant opposition from member associations and footballing bodies.
Infantino stated that the proposal had created divisions that were no longer in line with its original objectives. "As a result, this proposal will not proceed," he said. The plan had involved offering Fifa's 211 member associations $40 million each in exchange for backing the private investment proposal.
Opposition to the plan was substantial. Uefa, the governing body for European football with 55 member associations, had voted to boycott World Cups if the plans moved forward. Fifa's chief operating officer, Kevin Lamour, indicated that the governing body's own administration had been "deceived" regarding the project.
Carlos Cordeiro, Infantino's senior adviser on global strategy and governance, resigned over the matter, describing the proposal as "a bad deal for football" that would "mortgage football's future." Further opposition came from Concacaf, which governs football in North, Central America, and the Caribbean, and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), which expressed solidarity with Uefa and Concacaf. UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham also voiced his disapproval, stating Infantino was "the wrong man" to lead Fifa.
Infantino, 56, is seeking re-election for a fourth term as president at the Fifa Congress in March. He has indicated his intention to bring all interested parties together in a spirit of shared interest for football.