FIFA has accused UEFA of running a coordinated smear campaign against president Gianni Infantino in response to US court filings regarding an aborted $4.2 billion World Cup commercialization plan.
FIFA filed legal responses in US courts calling UEFA’s actions little more than press releases aimed at its leadership.
Read Also:Done Deal: Ehizibue Swaps Udinese For Genoa
The conflict follows FIFA’s scrapped proposal, known as the FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE), to sell stakes in World Cup commercial rights to private equity, which involved Josh Kushner’s Thrive Capital.
FIFA withdrew the proposal in August 2026 after facing intense pushback and boycott threats led by UEFA
UEFA sought document discoveries through US courts in New York, Florida, and Colorado to prepare a potential criminal complaint in Switzerland for alleged “criminal mismanagement” against Infantino.
Read Also:Done Deal: Nigerian Striker Seals Move To Belgian Club Cercle Brugge
According to Al Jazera, FIFA’s legal team moved to intervene and block the discovery requests, arguing that UEFA lacks standing, that the proceedings do not exist, and that UEFA is attempting to oust Infantino from power.
“While these applications are styled as legal pleadings with captions and docket numbers, they are little more than press releases in further support of UEFA’s smear campaign against FIFA and its leadership,” say the FIFA filings.
