Gianni Infantino holds crisis meeting in Morocco as FIFA stake sale fallout continues - NBC News

FIFA President Gianni Infantino convened a crisis meeting with top officials in Morocco on Wednesday, August 5, 2026, seeking to protect his position after the collapse of his plan to sell off commercial rights to the World Cup.
The proposal, floated last week to FIFA's 211 member associations, would have sold 20% of a new commercial rights body to private investment to raise $4.2 billion, with critics alarmed by the involvement of a company reportedly linked to President Donald Trump's family.
Infantino's climbdown on the plan last Friday failed to quell criticism, with European confederation UEFA accusing him of selling the soul of the game and declaring it no longer has confidence in his leadership.
The backlash has jeopardized Infantino's expected reelection for a fourth term at the FIFA Congress in Morocco in March, with a handful of European federations withdrawing their support for the Swiss-Italian.
Internal dissent has grown, as Secretary General Mattias Grafstrom circulated a staff memo lamenting the "sad and reproachable series of events," while Chief Operating Officer Kevin Lamour said staff had been "deceived" over what he called "the project of one person."
Senior adviser Carlos Cordeiro resigned in protest, and Global Football Development chief Arsene Wenger distanced himself from the proposal, stating he was not involved in its drafting and that withdrawing it was "absolutely necessary."