UEFA is preparing possible criminal proceedings in Switzerland against FIFA President Gianni Infantino over a now-abandoned proposal to transfer commercial rights connected to the World Cup and other FIFA competitions into a new company involving private investors.
European football’s governing body has applied to a United States federal court in Florida seeking access to documents and testimony held by two FIFA-linked entities, FIFA Americas Inc. and FWC2026 US Inc. UEFA says the material could be used in a contemplated criminal complaint against Infantino and potentially other FIFA officials and advisers.
The dispute centres on the proposed creation of FIFA Forward Enterprise, or FFE, which would have housed commercial rights connected to the men’s and women’s World Cups and the Club World Cup.
UEFA alleges the proposal was developed by Infantino and a small group of advisers and investors without adequate consultation with FIFA’s Council, the regional football confederations or FIFA’s 211 member associations.
According to the court filing, private investors would have paid about $4.2 billion for a stake in the proposed commercial company, implying an overall valuation of roughly $20 billion.
UEFA argues that the valuation substantially underestimated the value of FIFA’s commercial rights and says the proposal was neither subjected to an open competitive bidding process nor independently valued.
The European governing body says it is considering a complaint under provisions of Swiss law relating to criminal mismanagement. The allegations remain claims by UEFA, and no court has determined that Infantino or any other FIFA official committed a criminal offence.
The proposal triggered strong resistance across international football after it became public in late July. UEFA’s 55 member associations opposed the arrangement, while other football bodies subsequently raised objections to the proposed restructuring of FIFA’s commercial assets.
FIFA abandoned the plan on August 1 following the backlash, but UEFA argues that questions remain over how the proposal was developed, valued and advanced within football’s world governing body.
The disagreement has deepened tensions between Infantino and UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin, with European football officials increasingly questioning FIFA’s governance structure and the concentration of authority around its president.
UEFA has also indicated that it could pursue further institutional and legal measures aimed at strengthening governance safeguards within FIFA.
FIFA and Infantino had not publicly provided a detailed response to the latest allegations at the time of the reports.
