UEFA Prepares Penal Denunciation Against FIFA President Gianni Infantino Over Aborted World Cup Commercial Plan
European football’s governing body is preparing a criminal complaint in Switzerland against FIFA President Gianni Infantino over his aborted initiative to sell a stake in the organization’s future commercial revenues, according to legal documents and reporting by the Financial Times.
The legal offensive follows a failed project led by Infantino to monetize the FIFA World Cup by selling a 20 percent stake in a newly formed commercial subsidiary to private investors.
U.S. Court Filings Target Joshua Kushner’s Investment Firm
To build its case, the UEFA leadership filed applications in United States courts to obtain discovery material from New York-based investment firm Thrive Capital Management, founded by Joshua Kushner. Court documents filed in Manhattan and in the Southern District of Florida reveal that Thrive and Kushner were lined up as the lead private backers in the transaction.
The proposed deal would have handed the private investors a permanent financial stake in FIFA’s most lucrative assets in exchange for an injection of capital. According to a 56-page document prepared by UEFA’s legal team and filed in U.S. courts, the organization alleges that the operation involved an “absurdly low” enterprise value of roughly only some 20,000 million of dollars that was never subjected to an independent appraisal or a competitive public auction.
Swiss Penal Code and Allegations of Unfair Management
Lawyers representing the European organization stated in court records that they are contemplating criminal proceedings in Switzerland against Infantino, and potentially against other FIFA officials and advisers, under Article 158 of the Swiss Penal Code for alleged disloyal management and administration.
Legal filings assert that the plan served as a vehicle for Infantino and a select inner circle to secure permanent benefits from the governing body’s premier assets to the detriment of FIFA’s member associations and the broader football community. The filings characterize the valuation proposed under the initiative as a “fraudulently off-market price promoted by Infantino for his own benefit.”
Timeline of the Dispute and Infantino’s Retreat
Infantino originally defended the initiative by claiming it would unlock unprecedented commercial potential and opportunities for FIFA. However, facing a severe backlash from international stakeholders and the threat of a complete break in sporting and commercial ties from the European body, the FIFA president formally scrapped the sales plan on August 1.
While Infantino subsequently admitted that the initiative had been handled inadequately, the European governing body maintained its offensive. Executives and federation leaders convened in Montecarlo to evaluate their next strategic steps. Following initial warnings issued on August 3 demanding that FIFA preserve all relevant documentation tied to the project, the legal team moved forward with international discovery requests to secure internal records from the entities involved.
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