The Asian Football Confederation, UEFA and CONCACAF have called for an independent review of FIFA’s failed proposal to sell a stake in a company that would commercialise the rights to the World Cup and other major tournaments.
The three confederations made the demand in a joint letter on Monday, following FIFA’s decision to abandon the controversial proposal after strong opposition from key football stakeholders.
In the letter published on UEFA’s website, the confederations described the proposal as a “profound failure of judgment” and a “fundamental breach of trust” with the institutions FIFA is mandated to serve.
The letter was signed by AFC President Salman bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa, CONCACAF President Victor Montagliani and UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin, alongside their respective general secretaries.
The confederations rejected FIFA’s description of the controversy as a failure of communication, arguing that the proposal was pursued without meaningful consultation and within a compressed timeframe that limited proper scrutiny by member associations.
“FIFA’s recent letter to its Vice-Presidents and 211 Member Associations acknowledges that mistakes were made in the process. It treats this as a failure of communication, when what football witnessed was a failure of judgment,” they said.
The three bodies argued that the proposal to sell an interest in the FIFA World Cup was fundamentally wrong and insisted that any examination of how the plan was developed should be conducted by a fully independent third party.
“FIFA has also committed to presenting a full report on these events to the FIFA Council, once again failing to recognise that proper governance in the face of such a profound lack of judgment would require that such a review be conducted by a fully independent third party, not by FIFA itself,” the letter stated.
They further argued that FIFA’s administration, staff and other stakeholders involved in the process should have no role in conducting the review.
The dispute began after FIFA President Gianni Infantino proposed in late July the creation of FIFA Forward Enterprise, a company intended to commercialise the rights to the World Cup and other major tournaments.
The proposal reportedly involved selling about 20 per cent of the company to private investors for approximately $4.2bn, with the proceeds intended for distribution to national football associations.
The plan immediately faced opposition from UEFA, CONCACAF and the AFC, which maintained that the commercial rights to the World Cup should not be opened to private investment without proper consultation with the wider football community.
FIFA eventually withdrew the proposal at the end of July following the backlash from stakeholders.
The three confederations also raised questions about the circumstances surrounding a recent FIFA leadership meeting in Morocco, saying only one elected official was present and that neither FIFA Council members nor member associations were invited.
“Only the management committee, composed of FIFA-employed senior staff, was present,” they said.
They also criticised the decision to summon some members of FIFA’s Management Committee abroad rather than hold the meeting at FIFA headquarters in Zurich.
According to the confederations, the circumstances surrounding the meeting reinforced their concerns about FIFA’s handling of the failed commercialisation plan and its wider governance implications.
“This is about something more fundamental: the integrity of the game, and the integrity of those elected to lead it,” they said.
The confederations added, “Football’s strength has always been its unity. We call for that unity to be honoured now, for leadership that serves football, not seeks to command it.”
The demand for an independent review comes amid a wider dispute over Infantino’s leadership and the direction of FIFA under his administration.
FIFA said on Saturday that it would resist what it described as a “concerted and ongoing effort” to undermine Infantino, insisting that the president remains democratically elected and backed by its 211 member associations.
The governing body rejected calls or processes that do not comply with its statutes and democratic procedures, while dismissing recent allegations and reports it described as unsubstantiated or false.
FIFA said it welcomed legitimate scrutiny but would challenge inaccurate or misleading reporting, maintaining that disagreements over Infantino’s reforms should not be used to undermine his mandate.
The latest dispute has therefore widened beyond the abandoned FIFA Forward Enterprise proposal, with the three confederations now demanding an independent examination of the decision-making process and the governance issues surrounding the failed plan.
(The Sun)