Fifa has informed members of its governing Council that they will be granted access to review specific documents linked to president Gianni Infantino’s abandoned plan to sell stakes in the World Cup to private investors. The announcement came from Fifa secretary general Mattias Grafstrom just hours before a deadline set by European football’s governing body, Uefa. That followed a council meeting at which Infantino apologised for the abandoned sell-off plot but failed to offer a full explanation for how the proposal was devised, asking that questions be submitted in writing. Nothing has changed’ – FA chair on Infantino.
Under the new protocol, council members will be required to travel to the organisation’s headquarters in Zurich to examine the paperwork in person. Grafstrom noted that the documents would be subject to strict review protocols to protect confidentiality, with members given a two-week window to register for viewing. It remains unclear which specific files will be released.
This move follows a significant ultimatum from Uefa, which gave Fifa until November 2 to disclose details regarding the contentious Fifa Forward Enterprise (FFE) proposal. Uefa also demanded answers to a comprehensive list of inquiries concerning Fifa’s governance, decision-making, and funding structures. Last month, Uefa explicitly stated that Fifa had failed to address several fundamental issues.
The eight-page list of questions from Uefa covers a range of topics, including the allocation of an inaugural Fifa Peace Prize to US President Donald Trump and the controversial handling of a suspended ban for USA striker Folarin Balogun. The correspondence also questioned the lack of Council oversight during the FFE proposal development, asserting that governance reforms cannot substitute for current accountability. The acknowledgement of mistakes and the announcement of ‘potential governance reforms’ do not answer how the relevant decisions were taken or why the Fifa Council was not involved at the appropriate stage,” the letter said, the withdrawal of FFE.
In response to the mounting pressure, Grafstrom characterized Uefa’s demand as containing far more questions than the administration could have reasonably anticipated.
He indicated that Fifa is currently drafting a formal response, which will be shared with all council members at a later date. Regarding the FFE project itself, he maintained that the proposal would have required mandatory Council approval and that no financial penalty would have resulted from the project’s withdrawal.
Sport reports that Fifa officials considered Uefa’s two-week timeline for addressing more than 100 questions to be unfeasible. Factors cited for this delay include the organisation’s focus on the upcoming youth World Cup in Azerbaijan and preparations for an extraordinary congress scheduled for later this month.
Complicating matters, some of Fifa’s ability to provide information is reportedly constrained by ongoing legal action initiated by Uefa in the United States. Uefa has requested the disclosure of evidence and has indicated the possibility of lodging a formal criminal complaint within Switzerland.
These developments unfold as pressure mounts on Gianni Infantino, who has led Fifa since 2016. November 18 serves as the cutoff date for candidates to confirm their intention to challenge the president in next year’s election. While Uefa has not specified the consequences for failing to meet its October deadline, it intends to maintain scrutiny over these governance failures. But hoped it added to the pressure on Infantino before 18 November – the cut-off date for any candidates to confirm they are standing against him in next year’s presidential election, uefa did not outline what steps it intended to take should Fifa not meet the deadline.
