A chaotic fortnight has left Fifa president Gianni Infantino isolated and under mounting pressure to resign, after a secret plan to sell stakes in the World Cup to private investors triggered a wave of condemnation from football's governing bodies, politicians and former allies alike.
The saga began on 27 July, just as the World Cup drew to a close, when Infantino used a lengthy Instagram post to accuse the media of spreading "hate and false rumours" about greed within Fifa and his relationship with Donald Trump. He suggested critics should instead "reflect, meditate, pray or watch a match."
Within a day, that message had unravelled. The Times revealed details of a £3.1bn scheme to sell equity stakes in the World Cup to private investors, a deal reportedly involving a relative of Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, and one that could have brought Infantino personal earnings running into tens of millions of pounds. The revelation drew swift criticism, including from former Fifa president Sepp Blatter, who warned on social media that "the financial dimension is deeply damaging football."
Infantino initially sought to downplay the controversy, describing the plan as merely a "proposal" subject to a "democratic process." But it emerged that Fifa had given its 211 member federations until 19 September to endorse the deal or forfeit a £15m payout. Concacaf said it had only learned of the plan through media reports, while Uefa accused Fifa officials of using football to enrich themselves and associates.
The backlash intensified after further reporting, based on documents drawn up with JP Morgan, described Fifa as "undermonetized." In response, all 55 Uefa member federations agreed to boycott Fifa competitions should the plan proceed. In the United States, congressman Jamie Raskin warned of a possible congressional investigation, branding the scheme