FIFA apologises, backs Infantino over World Cup plan

FIFA's leadership apologised on Wednesday, August 5, over the controversy around a failed plan to open the World Cup to private investment, while reaffirming its full support for president Gianni Infantino after a crisis meeting in Rabat, Morocco.

The FIFA secretary general and members of the FIFA Management Board who attended the meeting said they backed Infantino as “the only official elected by the 211 FIFA Member Associations.” They also acknowledged mistakes in the handling of the FIFA Forward Enterprise proposal.

FIFA said the process should have been handled differently and that it had not intended for the FIFA Council and member associations to feel excluded. It said errors were also made after the proposal was leaked to media, and that a separate apology was sent to the FIFA Council and member associations.

FIFA said a review will now be conducted and a report presented to the FIFA Council at its next scheduled meeting. It also said the FIFA Forward Enterprise proposal is now off the table.

The plan would have created a new commercial subsidiary to run events including the World Cup and Club World Cup. FIFA said the project could have raised up to $4.2 billion based on a $20 billion valuation. It said that, if approved, the project could have given each of its 211 member associations a one-off payment of $20 million in early 2027 and increased their funding allocation for the 2027-2030 cycle from $8 million to $20 million.

Infantino withdrew the proposal last Saturday after a backlash. UEFA called the plan a “shabby, back room, opaque deal.” CONCACAF called for “a comprehensive reckoning with this presidency” and criticised Infantino's governance and leadership.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, whose country co-hosted the 2026 World Cup, said on Wednesday that he no longer had confidence in Infantino's ability to lead FIFA.

Moroccan football federation president Fouzi Lekjaa, whose country is due to co-host the 2030 World Cup, has publicly supported Infantino since the plan was dropped.