Fury within European football over FIFA’s proposal to restructure how it runs its tournaments, most notably the World Cup, shows no sign of fading. England fans have stepped up calls to boycott the competition just as the English Football Association leads moves within UEFA to confront a project raising widespread concerns about its future.
UEFA are preparing to hold an emergency meeting to discuss the proposals of FIFA president Gianni Infantino, according to press reports. At the heart of it sits the creation of a private company to manage FIFA’s tournaments. A unified European stance could follow, one that might go as far as a World Cup boycott.
Leading the opposition, the English Football Association say they feel “deeply concerned” over what they described as the absence of process, governance and transparency in the way the project has been presented. The circle of rejection is widening across Europe, and pressure on FIFA grows by the day.
What is FIFA’s plan?
Under the proposal, FIFA intend to establish a company named “FIFA Forward Enterprise” to take over the operational management of the world governing body’s tournaments, including the men’s and women’s World Cups and the Club World Cup. FIFA would retain a majority stake. A slice ranging between 20 and 30% of the company’s shares would go to investors, potentially generating billions of dollars.
The project would also grant each of FIFA’s 211 member associations a stake worth around 15 million pounds sterling, to keep or to sell. On top of that, any association approving the plan within 53 days would receive an exceptional payment of 30 million pounds sterling.
Infantino is planning to hold the World Cup every two years instead of four, according to reports, with the tournament comprising 64 teams. The idea has provoked sharp criticism from fans and prominent figures across the game.
American businessman Joshua Kushner, brother of Jared Kushner, son-in-law of US President Donald Trump, sits among the potential investors in the project. That has only fuelled the controversy.
“A ridiculous idea”
The British newspaper “The Sun” gathered reactions from England fans. Simon Harris, who followed the team in the United States during the World Cup, could barely contain his anger, saying: “This will be the end of the World Cup. FIFA is destroying football by selling the soul of the game for money.”
He added: “UEFA must withdraw its countries from FIFA and boycott the next World Cup, as this is the only way to force FIFA to come to its senses. It is all about making more money for FIFA and Infantino.”
Harris then turned to the names close to US President Donald Trump attached to the project: “The existence of Trump family links to the body that could run the World Cup makes matters worse. Infantino must be stopped.”
Steve Hartshorn, one of the most prominent England supporters and a man who says he has not missed a single match in 14 years, was just as blunt: “Infantino must be removed from his position. He acts as if he is untouchable, and UEFA must stand up to him. The English Football Association should also create a system that runs football properly.”
He added: “Holding the World Cup every two years with 64 teams participating would be a completely ridiculous idea, as the tournament’s distinctiveness lies in the fact that it is held once every four years.”
FIFA’s greed
Manchester City supporter Mike Andrews, who also travelled with England in the United States, put it bluntly: “FIFA is snatching the World Cup away from the fans when it allows a commercial entity to run the tournament in order to make more profit. Everything that is happening is because of FIFA’s greed.”
Former English Football Association president and former Manchester City chairman David Bernstein savaged the proposals, calling on England to withdraw from the World Cup if they go ahead: “The whole thing is appalling. It looks like cronyism and favouritism, and frankly it reeks of corruption.”
The English Football Association, for their part, insist they knew nothing of the proposal before it circulated. An official statement read: “We were not aware of this proposal at all, and we do not possess substantive details about it. Based on the limited information available, we are deeply concerned about the absence of the process and governance that have brought the project to this stage. When FIFA presents the proposal fully and transparently as it has promised, we will announce our position.”
UEFA aimed scathing criticism at the project, accusing FIFA of seeking to use football “to enrich itself and its friends”. One source inside UEFA told reporters: “There is a great deal of anger towards this plan, because the future of football is at stake.”
Full European consensus remains out of reach, however. Czech Football Association president David Trunda reckons the proposals could carry “positive effects”, while CONCACAF and the Asian Football Confederation voiced their displeasure at not being consulted before the project was put forward.
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