{"id":874,"date":"2026-07-31T21:37:53","date_gmt":"2026-07-31T21:37:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/americanlivingreport.com\/?p=874"},"modified":"2026-07-31T21:37:53","modified_gmt":"2026-07-31T21:37:53","slug":"everyone-hates-fifas-plan-to-sell-the-world-cup-to-private-equity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/americanlivingreport.com\/?p=874","title":{"rendered":"Everyone hates FIFA\u2019s plan to sell the World Cup to private equity"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<div>\n<div>\n<div>\n<div>\n<p><em>This story appeared in <\/em>Today, Explained,<em> a daily newsletter that helps you understand the most compelling news and stories of the day. Subscribe here<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/americanlivingreport.com\/?p=872\">The glorious burden of stockpiling little glass jars<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>The 2026 FIFA World Cup wasn\u2019t perfect, but it was still pretty great. Legions of fans got to experience the US (and Canada, and Mexico), and Americans embraced visiting teams in turn. There was lots of extremely good football (soccer), and Cinderella teams like Cape Verde had a chance to shine.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>Not even two weeks later, though, FIFA president Gianni Infantino is doing his best to kill the good vibes. He has a new proposal to sell stakes in the World Cup to private equity, attempting to capitalize on an enormously profitable tournament \u2014 with record revenue of about $15 billion in this year\u2019s edition.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>Specifically, his plan would create a new entity to run the World Cup, with FIFA the majority owner. Up to 21 percent of the company would be offered to private shareholders, in a major departure from FIFA\u2019s current, ostensibly non-profit model.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>And so far, nearly everyone hates it. Many of FIFA\u2019s 211 member associations are in outright revolt; one of its six regional confederations, UEFA, which represents European football, has threatened to boycott FIFA events if the plan goes forward. \u201cWe will never lend this model our legitimacy,\u201d UEFA wrote in a statement released Thursday.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div>\n<h2>Go a little deeper<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>UEFA is not the only governing body in football that has condemned Infantino\u2019s plan to bring private money into the World Cup, though it has led the charge. Concacaf \u2014 which represents North and Central America, plus the Caribbean \u2014 and the Asian Football Confederation have also come out against the idea.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/americanlivingreport.com\/?p=870\">Can the internet survive rogue AI?<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>Collectively, they make up nearly two-thirds of FIFA\u2019s member associations, which creates a real math problem for Infantino \u2014 the plan would require approval from a majority of FIFA members to take effect.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>The intensity of the backlash has raised questions about Infantino\u2019s future. As the Athletic reported on Thursday, he\u2019s up for reelection as FIFA president in March, but he may no longer have an easy time of it. On Friday, FIFA\u2019s chief operating officer described the proposal as \u201cthe project of one person\u201d \u2014 Infantino \u2014 in a statement coming out against it.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>For now, though, FIFA and Infantino say they plan to forge ahead with a \u201cconsultation period\u201d for the plan. It sets up an even higher-stakes version of the battle over \u201chydration breaks\u201d \u2014 which double as lucrative commercial breaks \u2014 that Roger Bennett, founder of the soccer podcast <em>Men in Blazers<\/em>, described to Vox in June.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>\u201cUltimately,\u201d Bennett told Vox, \u201cthe whole game of football is currently in a battle between its roots and the commercial imperative that comes from being as big as it is. \u2026 It is the last megaphone which is faintly audible around the world. And when you have something that big, it becomes deeply desirous to make as much money as you can out of it.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div>\n<h2>One link for later<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p><strong>\u27a8 Bail on plans the right way.<\/strong> If you\u2019re currently staring down a weekend engagement you\u2019d rather not attend, Vox\u2019s Allie Volpe has some pointers on canceling without injury or offense. For starters, you can only bail on casual events with someone you either know very well or not that well at all. And you should offer an honest excuse before attempting to reschedule.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/americanlivingreport.com\/?p=868\">The DSA has had unprecedented success. It also has serious internal divisions.<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div>\n<h2>Before you go\u2026<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><span>See More<!-- -->:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Culture<\/li>\n<li>FIFA World Cup<\/li>\n<li>Sports<\/li>\n<li>Today, Explained newsletter<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Infantino\u2019s proposal has many FIFA member associations up in arms.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":873,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-874","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-interesting"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Everyone hates FIFA\u2019s plan to sell the World Cup to private equity - 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