UEFA and its 55 member associations have voted to boycott all FIFA competitions if Gianni Infantino’s proposals to open World Cup ownership to private investors are passed by member associations. The decision came at an emergency virtual meeting chaired by UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin, called in response to proposals announced earlier in the week by the world governing body.
In a statement released after the meeting, UEFA said its members “stand as one” in their opposition. “We unanimously and unequivocally reject FIFA’s proposal to transfer ownership interests in the World Cup and other FIFA competitions to private investors,” the statement read. “The World Cup cannot be treated as an investment product. It is one of football’s greatest sporting legacies. No part of it should ever be surrendered to private investors. The World Cup is not for sale.”
The boycott would extend to all FIFA competitions, including the men’s and women’s World Cups and the Club World Cup. The first senior test of that position arrives in October, when the Women’s World Cup play-offs are scheduled to be held. FIFA’s plan is to create a commercial subsidiary to run its major events, including the World Cup, with external investors able to buy stakes in it.
The Football Association said England stood “shoulder to shoulder” with its European colleagues and “fully support the collective view”, adding that “the FIFA World Cup belongs to football and always will.” The Scottish FA also backed the position, stating its board “agrees unequivocally with the concerns raised by all members over the manner in which these proposals have been issued, and deadline set, without a full consultation process or consideration to good governance.”
While UEFA represents only around a quarter of FIFA’s 211-country membership, it encompasses the sport’s most decorated nations. Thirteen of the 23 World Cups held to date have been won by European countries, and six of the eight quarter-finalists at this summer’s World Cup — including winners Spain — were European sides.
Image credit: BBC Sport / BBC Sport
