Sepp Blatter has warned that FIFA will lose its soul if it implements a controversial plan to sell stakes in the World Cup to private investors.
There has been outrage across world football after FIFA confirmed the plans on Tuesday.
Under the scheme, a company, FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE), would be put together to oversee FIFA’s top competitions in the men’s and women’s games, including the World Cup and the Club World Cup. The plan could see FIFA president Gianni Infantino earn tens of millions and raise the possibility of the World Cup and Club World Cup being held more often than every four years.
FIFA’s 211 member associations would receive a stake that they could either keep or sell to generate income. In addition, it is claimed that Infantino, set to be re-elected unopposed until 2031, would be positioned to become commissioner of the company after his final term as president comes to a close. It is expected he could command a salary of $64m as commissioner.
A majority stake in the company would be owned by FIFA, with private investors taking on around 20 to 30 per cent and the member nations each possessing a small stake. Joshua Kushner — brother of Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared — is the proposed lead investor.
Infantino has subsequently written to all 211 member associations, giving them extra incentive to back the plan.
He has told the members they will receive $40m (£30m) if they support the plan, adding that £20m will be immediately available to them on January 1 next year.
However, Infantino gave those members a deadline of September 19 by which to accept to the one-time offer.
European football’s governing body UEFA has vehemently criticised the plans, saying they cross “a line that football’s governing institutions should never cross”.
And former FIFA president Blatter, who resigned in 2015 amid a corruption probe and was subsequently banned for eight years by the body’s ethics committee, has joined the chorus of dissenting voices.
“Football belongs to no individual and to no institution. It belongs to the people,” Blatter told Reuters.
“If FIFA were transferred into a profit-oriented corporate structure, it would lose its soul.”
Blatter has criticised his successor on numerous occasions, slamming the decision to expand the World Cup to 48 teams, the award of the 2034 tournament to Saudi Arabia and the suspension of United States forward Folarin Balogun’s ban for a last-16 tie with Belgium at this year’s competition after apparent influence by US president Donald Trump.
“The FIFA World Cup is not a commercial asset that belongs to a handful of executives,” Blatter added. “It is part of the cultural heritage of world football. FIFA is the guardian of the World Cup, not its owner. There is a fundamental difference.
“The beneficiaries should be the game itself — from grassroots football to the highest international level — not outside investors seeking returns.”
