UEFA blasts FIFA proposal to allow for $10B in World Cup private investment - ESPN

UEFA is moving to convene an emergency virtual meeting of its 55 member associations this week, with sources indicating a potential World Cup boycott is on the table to oppose FIFA's plan to raise up to $20 billion by selling equity to outside investors.
FIFA president Gianni Infantino says the governing body will seek investors to fund the newly formed FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE), which would take control of commercial and event operations, including future men's and women's World Cups.
FIFA is working with J.P. Morgan on the plan, with prospective investors including Thrive Eternal, launched by Joshua Kushner, whose brother Jared Kushner is a son-in-law of U.S. President Donald Trump.
UEFA responded sharply on Tuesday, declaring that the sport "isn't FIFA's to sell" and warning that "the soul and governance of football are not assets to trade," while criticizing the lack of transparency over who would gain financially.
U.K. Prime Minister Andy Burnham became the first prominent leader to condemn the proposal, stating on X that "football does not belong to investors."
FIFA framed the initiative as "the democratization of football worldwide," saying FFE would raise up to $4.2 billion later this year for development programs at an initial $20 billion valuation by selling minority, non-controlling stakes; the effort echoes FIFA's abandoned 2021 biennial World Cup plan, which collapsed under a similar UEFA boycott threat amid concerns over Infantino's ties to Trump.