Fifa Council Gets Two Weeks to Inspect World Cup Sell-Off Papers, but Only in Zurich

Fifa has agreed to let its ruling council examine “key documents” on Gianni Infantino’s abandoned World Cup sell-off, but only in person, only in Zurich and only under tight confidentiality rules. The offer came hours before a deadline set by Uefa, and it falls well short of the full public answers Uefa’s leaders have been demanding.

What Fifa has actually offered

In a letter sent on Monday, Fifa secretary general Mattias Grafstrom told the 37 members of the Fifa Council, a body that includes Infantino and eight vice-presidents, that they can view the paperwork at the organisation’s Zurich headquarters. They must register within two weeks. According to the BBC, which saw the letter, the material will be available “under strict review protocols to preserve confidentiality.” It is not yet clear which documents will be included, and nothing is being released to the public.

Debbie Hewitt, chair of the English Football Association and a Fifa vice-president, is known to intend to take up the offer. She criticised Infantino for a lack of transparency after the council’s last meeting. The FA itself has declined to comment.

Why Uefa set a deadline

The Fifa Forward Enterprise (FFE) proposal would have opened Fifa’s premium competitions, including the World Cup, to private investors. Reports differ on the details. One put the scheme at $4.2bn, while another described a minority stake in a new $20bn entity managing World Cup commercial rights. Sources also differ on whether it was dropped in July or August. They agree that it was withdrawn after a fierce backlash.

The row did not end there. At a council meeting on 15 October, Infantino apologised for the plan but did not explain how it was devised, and he asked members to submit questions in writing. Uefa then sent a lengthy letter with eight pages of questions, giving Fifa until 2 November to respond. Accounts of the number of questions vary, from 42 areas of concern to more than 100. The topics included who approved the plan, why the council was not involved at the proper stage and why exclusivity was reportedly awarded to Thrive Capital. They also covered the Fifa Peace Prize given to US President Donald Trump and the suspension of a ban on American striker Folarin Balogun at the World Cup.

Uefa argued that the withdrawal and the promise of “potential governance reforms” do not answer how the decisions were made. It said those answers “cannot be deferred until the next meeting of the Fifa Council.”

Fifa’s defence and the legal backdrop

Grafstrom’s letter called the demand “significantly more questions than the Fifa administration could reasonably have anticipated.” He said a fuller response would go to all council members “in due course.” He also argued the FFE could not have proceeded without approval from the council and a majority of member associations, and that Fifa faces no penalty for pulling out.

Fifa has described the two-week deadline as unfeasible, pointing to its work on a new youth World Cup in Azerbaijan and preparations for an extraordinary congress later this month. BBC Sport was also told that Fifa’s room to answer some questions is limited by legal action Uefa began in the United States. That action seeks evidence for a possible criminal mismanagement complaint against Infantino in Switzerland. No complaint has been filed, and nothing in the sources establishes any wrongdoing.

The election clock

The timing matters politically. Candidates have until 18 November to declare against Infantino in the presidential election, set for 18 March in Rabat, Morocco. He is seeking a fourth term. Uefa has so far struggled to find a credible challenger. Concacaf president Victor Montagliani has said he wants another term at his own confederation, and former Switzerland defender Ramon Vega has said he is willing to stand but may lack the necessary support. The Asian Football Confederation’s backing for Infantino on 23 October was a significant boost to him.

The document-viewing window, which runs to roughly the same period as the candidacy deadline, gives council members a chance to scrutinise the World Cup sell-off at first hand. Whether a supervised read-through in Zurich changes any votes, or satisfies Uefa, remains to be seen. Uefa has not said what it will do next, and it has been approached for comment.

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File photo: FIFA-Garden.jpg by MCaviglia, digimen.ch, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.