FIFA’s legal representatives have accused UEFA of harassing Gianni Infantino in a legal document filed with a Florida court, urging the judge to reject UEFA’s request for evidence related to a private investor plan for the World Cup. The controversial plan, which caused a stir in July and was quickly abandoned, led UEFA to seek approval for discovery in three different courts to support a potential criminal complaint against Infantino in Switzerland.
In the court filing, FIFA’s lawyers argued that UEFA’s actions were in bad faith and aimed at harassing Infantino, emphasizing that the accusations of personal profit-seeking by the FIFA president were unfounded. The document also highlighted the upcoming deadline for potential candidates to enter the FIFA presidential election in Morocco next March, where Infantino intends to run for a final term until 2031.
UEFA’s opposition to FIFA’s Forward Enterprise (FFE) plan, which involved creating a subsidiary and selling part of FIFA’s commercial rights to investors, triggered a global backlash. UEFA alleged that Infantino promoted an inflated valuation of the project for personal gain, suggesting he had ulterior motives in mind. However, FIFA denied these claims, stating that Infantino had no personal financial interest in the FFE project.
The controversial plan was revealed by the media in July, leading to criticism of Infantino’s leadership by FIFA’s former chief operating officer and the resignation of his senior adviser. Infantino later acknowledged mistakes in handling the plan and offered to conduct an external review of FIFA’s governance. FIFA maintained that the commercial spinoff was intended to boost global soccer development beyond Europe’s traditional powerhouses.
In a separate development, Infantino communicated with FIFA’s member federations about the possibility of distributing more funds from the organization’s reserves. This proposal followed calls from critics within UEFA, CONCACAF, and the AFC for FIFA to share a dividend from its substantial cash reserves with its members. Infantino had initially proposed a higher dividend from the proceeds of the FFE project, which will be discussed at an upcoming FIFA Council meeting chaired by him in Zurich on October 15.