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Confidential documents linked to Gianni Infantino’s hugely controversial World Cup private investor plan will be made available for members of the Fifa Council to view.
Infantino had sought to set up a company, Fifa Forward Enterprise (FFE), to run the commercial interests of the World Cup and its other competitions, with private investors holding a minority stake.
The plan was abandoned in August after three continental confederations rejected it and Uefa threatened a boycott of Fifa competitions.
A letter sent by Uefa on behalf of European members of the Fifa Council on 19 October demanded answers to a series of questions about FFE and a range of other concerns about Infantino’s presidency by Monday.
It’s understood Fifa secretary general Mattias Grafstrom wrote to all Council members on Monday inviting them to view key documents related to the FFE proposal.
Council members – including Fifa vice-presidents such as Uefa president Aleksander Ceferin – have been invited to register their interest within the next two weeks should they wish to view the documents, in person and under specific conditions, at Fifa’s headquarters in Zurich.
The conditions specified are understood to have been applied in order to preserve Fifa’s confidentiality obligations.
For now it is understood the documents to be made available relate solely to FFE. The 19 October letter sought clarity around the Folarin Balogun disciplinary case and a range of other matters, but it is understood a wider response will come to Council members in due course.
Fifa is understood to have viewed Uefa’s two-week deadline to respond to all the 42 areas covered in the letter as unfeasible.
Fifa has been focused on the organisation of the inaugural Under-15 World Cup in Azerbaijan, featuring 189 nations and 3,000 players. It is also preparing for an extraordinary Fifa Congress on 23 November to appoint the hosts for the 2031 and 2035 Women’s World Cups.
Uefa’s ongoing legal action in the United States – where it has sought disclosure of documents linked to FFE – is also understood to have created legal boundaries.
The 19 October letter posed questions around the decision to award exclusivity to Thrive Capital to lead the FFE private investor group. Thrive was founded by Joshua Kushner, the brother of United States President Donald Trump’s son-in-law.
It also sought answers around the timeline surrounding the plan’s development, the $20bn (£15bn) valuation placed on the company, why Fifa felt it was necessary to seek private investment given its healthy cash reserves and whether Infantino stood to gain personally from the plan.
Council members had attended a meeting of the Fifa Council on 15 October and asked Infantino questions in person. One of those members, Football Association chair and Fifa vice-president Debbie Hewitt, said after the meeting that Council members were asked to submit questions in writing.
The Fifa Council is not due to meet again until 16 December. Uefa has pledged to identify a credible alternative candidate to stand against Infantino in the Fifa presidential election next March.
The deadline for candidacy submissions is 18 November.
PA
