FIFA Cancels Controversial Plan to Sell World Cup Shares After Wave of Rejections

ILLUSTRATION/DOK The White House

JAKARTA - The International Football Federation (FIFA) has finally canceled President Gianni Infantino's proposal to sell a portion of the World Cup commercial rights to private investors.

According to a source quoted by the New York Post newspaper, the controversial plan failed after the rejection of football officials around the world as well as a major split among FIFA's senior executives.

"FIFA and their bankers are very mistaken in reading the situation in Europe, where the richest clubs and leagues in this sport generate the majority of their income from the game," the newspaper wrote.

"It's not like they want to continue to be involved in this mess," a source said.

Previously, Infantino's proposal was rejected by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), the Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Football (CONCACAF), the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), and the South American Football Confederation (CONMEBOL). UEFA also announced plans to boycott FIFA tournaments.

The plan includes the creation of a commercial subsidiary called FIFA Forward Enterprise, which will manage FIFA's men's and women's major football competitions.

Infantino argues the move will increase revenue for FIFA's member associations and support the development of football around the world.

FIFA estimates the mechanism could generate funds of up to 4.2 billion US dollars. However, the proposal has drawn harsh criticism from football officials, federations, and various other organizations.