FIFA has dropped its plan to sell minority stakes in a new commercial unit that would manage the rights to the World Cup and other tournaments, sources told the New York Post on Friday. Private investors, including a group expected to be led by Joshua Kushner’s Thrive Eternal, and adviser JPMorgan have walked away after strong opposition.
The proposal, valued at about $20 billion, aimed to raise $4.2 billion by selling around 20% of FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE). It has now collapsed less than a week after becoming public, dealing a major blow to FIFA President Gianni Infantino’s plan to increase development funding for the body’s 211 member associations.
The New York Post, citing four sources, said Thrive has started talks to drop the plan, while JPMorgan no longer expects it to move ahead. The project quickly fell apart after UEFA threatened to boycott FIFA competitions, including future World Cups, while CONCACAF and the Asian Football Confederation rejected it.
Earlier Friday, senior FIFA adviser Carlos Cordeiro resigned, calling the proposal “a bad deal for football” and “mortgaging football’s future.” FIFA’s chief operating officer also opposed the plan. FIFA had insisted “nobody is selling football” and promised more talks, but losing major financial backers left the project with no path forward.
The proposal would have placed FIFA’s commercial rights and event operations under FFE, while FIFA kept majority control and sold minority stakes. Infantino said it would boost funding for member associations, but critics questioned the process, investor selection and long-term risks. FIFA had not officially confirmed abandoning the plan as of late Friday.
