European football's governing body, Uefa, is preparing to commission an independent valuation of Fifa's controversial World Cup sale plan amid suspicion that president Gianni Infantino agreed to offload future tournament profits at a price well below market value.
The scrutiny comes despite a written apology Infantino sent to Fifa's 211 member associations following emergency talks in Morocco this week. Uefa remains unconvinced by the gesture and intends to keep pressing for his departure, intensifying its examination of the abandoned scheme, which Infantino himself admitted was "a mistake."
At the heart of the controversy is the so-called Fifa Forward Enterprise plan, which was withdrawn after just four days last week. Under the proposal, a 21% stake in Fifa's commercial assets would have been sold to Thrive Capital, a private equity firm run by Joshua Kushner, brother of Jared Kushner, son-in-law of Donald Trump, for $4.2bn.
The plan collapsed after all 55 Uefa member associations threatened to boycott the World Cup and other major competitions, forcing Fifa into a rapid reversal. Uefa played a central role in that pushback and is now turning its attention to how Fifa arrived at a $20bn valuation for its commercial assets in the first place.
According to a source familiar with Uefa's plans, the sales documentation that circulated last week offered no clarity on how the valuation was calculated, nor any indication that a competitive bidding process had taken place. "We need to find out if they were selling the World Cup at a knockdown price," the source said. "How did they get to $20bn? Was it a robust process?"
Fifa generated $15bn in revenue during the four-year cycle culminating in this summer's World Cup, a figure that has led market analysts consulted by Uefa to argue that a $20bn valuation significantly undersells the tournament's true worth. The proposal also reportedly failed to account for future growth potential, including possible tournament expansion.
"The World Cup is the only genuinely global mass entertainment event so an increase of $5bn on current revenues seems low to me," the source added. "This looks like a low-ball offer. The obvious financial upside of further expansion that the investors would demand – more teams, more regular World Cups, more Club World Cups – is not priced in."
Beyond the valuation concerns, Uefa has demanded a comprehensive review of Fifa's governance structures and has not ruled out pursuing legal action against the organisation. The episode has exposed rare public discord within Fifa's own ranks, with senior figures including secretary general Mattias Grafström, chief operating officer Kevin Lamour, and head of football development Arsène Wenger all reportedly voicing sharp internal criticism of the sell-off plan.
Despite the turmoil, Fifa has sought to project unity. Infantino appeared publicly alongside Grafström on Wednesday at a Women's Africa Cup of Nations fixture between Malawi and Zambia in Morocco, shortly after the crisis meetings in Rabat concluded. Fifa subsequently issued a statement affirming that its president continues to enjoy the