FIFA Wants to do Business With Trump's Relative

FIFA’s plan to sell about 20% of a new commercial arm valued at roughly $20bn drew criticism on Tuesday from Uefa, UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham, fan groups and lawmakers.

The proposal, first reported by the Financial Times, would create FIFA Forward Enterprise and bring in outside investors. FIFA said the move aims to build on the recent men’s World Cup, which helped it generate at least $13bn in revenue in the four-year cycle ending this year.

Burnham, who took over as UK prime minister this month, said the game “does not belong to investors”. He added: “The World Cup is not a product. It is the greatest competition in world sport, and it was never anyone’s to sell.”

UEFA, which runs football in Europe, said FIFA’s plan “crosses a line that football’s governing institutions should never cross”. It said: “The soul and governance of football are not assets to trade — especially with zero transparency as to who gains financially. None of us are the owners of football. It is not FIFA’s to sell.”

Talks are already advanced with Thrive Eternal, an investment vehicle run by Joshua Kushner, the brother of Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared, according to the article. Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee said the plan was further evidence of FIFA seeking to curry favour with the Trump family, while former FIFA president Sepp Blatter said the relationship between Gianni Infantino and the US president had reached “a financial dimension that is deeply damaging football”.

Infantino said in Tuesday’s announcement that the plan was “about the democratisation of football worldwide” and that proceeds would be “invested heavily even in the smallest or most remote parts of the footballing world”. FIFA said the proposal would increase football development funding over the next four years to $10bn from $4bn, raise annual payments to each of its 211 member associations to $5mn from $2mn and give each a one-off $20mn payment.