Uefa calls an emergency meeting as opposition to Fifa’s plan becomes more difficult Fifa

Uefa has called an emergency meeting of its 55 members on Thursday afternoon to discuss a coordinated response to Gianni Infantino’s plan to sell shares in the World Cup to private investors. A boycott of Fifa competitions in Europe is among the options being considered.

As the next big event on the Fifa calendar, a boycott of next year’s Women’s World Cup has been mentioned in the initial discussions, although there may be doubts in some parts of the women’s game due to the protest against Fifa’s proposals that focus more on making money from the Men’s World Cup and the Club World Cup.

Uefa’s first criticism of Fifa’s plan to “sell the soul” of football has received strong support from Concacaf – the confederation of North, Central America and the Caribbean – and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). If their members follow their lead there should be enough votes to block this proposal.

Those three associations make up 143 of FIFA’s 211 members, but consensus is not guaranteed, as it became clear when the Czech football association became the first in Europe to support the initiative.

Having received more than 200 letters of recommendation in support of his re-election next year, Infantino is confident he has enough votes – although it is unclear whether the proposal needs a simple majority to pass. Several sources said to create a new commercial entity – Fifa Forward Enterprise [FFE] – and selling a 20% stake to investors would require a change in Fifa’s rules, which require a 75% majority which would be very difficult to obtain.

On Wednesday evening, Infantino released a video to address the situation. “FFE is essentially a proposal, a promise,” he said. “It’s part of the democratic process – the consultative process – and, above all, it’s an opportunity but not an obligation. It’s a great opportunity to promote the development of the game around the world.”

Earlier, Uefa redoubled its attack on Fifa accusing the world governing body of “using sport to enrich itself and its friends” after it emerged Infantino had given members a deadline of September 19 to decide whether to apply for the $20m (£15m) first payment from the proposed sale.

An additional $20m for each organization will also be available later, although it is not clear whether accepting the money will amount to formal approval and thus remove the need for a vote.

“Today we heard about Fifa’s deadline for the associations to support their proposals or the single payment proposal will be withdrawn,” said Uefa. “This says everything you need to know about this plan. But as it has held discussions with many bodies throughout the game, Uefa knows that there is a great and growing opposition to Fifa’s scheme. Fifa cannot continue to use our game to enrich itself and its friends. We can grow it in the right way. It is time for us to prioritize associations, clubs, leagues, players and fans.”

Uefa’s second statement of criticism follows a similarly strong intervention by Concacaf, which is particularly notable as the organization recently hosted the lucrative World Cup and includes a region that has brought new proposed investment from New York-based Thrive Eternal.

The president of Concacaf, Victor Montagliani, was instrumental in the success of the application of the US, Mexico and Canada in this tournament, but together with the other seven vice presidents of Fifa and members of the Fifa council he was kept in the dark about these plans.

“Concacaf was informed of this matter only through media reports, after that, and through a press release,” Concacaf said. “We are very concerned about the lack of proper procedures.

“We share the disappointment of many in our region and the game that this level of information was drafted and shared publicly before there was any discussion with the relevant governing bodies and stakeholders.

“As leaders in football we are the guardians of the game, Fifa, the confederations and all the member bodies have the responsibility to always do things in a way that benefits the game, all the decisions we take must be guided by good governance, strong processes and long-term management.

“This is a framework that works under Concacaf. We hope that all members of the Fifa family will do the same.”

The AFC issued a similar statement of disapproval, widely understood to be backed by the Saudi Arabian football federation, a close ally of Infantino and host of the 2034 World Cup.

“AFC was not consulted about this proposal and is disappointed that such an important issue entered the public before the AFC family was given the opportunity to examine and discuss it through the proper and legal channels of governance,” it said.

“Although the AFC recognizes the importance of exploring new ways to strengthen the future of world football, efforts of this scale and their outcome must be based on the principles of good governance, transparency and rational consultation.

“Decisions that could reshape the commercial and financial future of the game require full prior engagement with unions, member organizations and other relevant stakeholders before any proposal is made to the relevant decision-making bodies.”

The Elite teams also expressed their displeasure, the association of European Football Clubs revealed that Fifa did not negotiate with them even though the two bodies signed a cooperation agreement.

“As an institution that represents more than 850 football clubs – their members, their players and the communities that play a major role in football around the world, not to mention Fifa competitions including all international club competitions – it would be good for the EFC to be fully consulted about a proposal of this nature,” he said.

“The EFC learned about this proposal in the same way as most football stakeholders around the world – without warning and in the media.”