\u2018As Europe has a voice, the World Cup will never be for sale\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\nUEFA\u2019s 470-word statement strongly condemned FIFA\u2019s plan.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe World Cup cannot be treated as an investment product,\u201d it said. \u201cIt is one of football\u2019s greatest sporting legacies. It has been built over generations by players, national teams and supporters across every continent. No part of it should ever be surrendered to private investors. The World Cup is not for sale.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe moment external investors acquire ownership interests in FIFA competitions, football changes forever. Commercial return becomes a permanent obligation. Investor expectations become a daily pressure. From that moment onwards, every decision on the international calendar, every decision on competition formats and every decision shaping the future of football is no longer driven by what best serves the game, but by what best serves shareholders.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis model has no place in world football. Football\u2019s future cannot be dictated by the expectations of those whose first duty is to maximise financial return. Nor can the interests of national associations, leagues, clubs, players and supporters become subordinate to investor returns. Football cannot mortgage its future for financial gain.<\/p>\n
\u201cEurope\u2019s position is clear. We will never lend this model our legitimacy. No one has the moral authority to sell what they merely hold in trust for the next generation.\u201d<\/p>\n
Are FIFA really trying to sell the World Cup? An expert explains<\/p>\n
Chris Weatherspoon<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are moments when institutions are judged not by what they are prepared to accept, but by what they refuse to compromise,\u201d the statement continued. \u201cThis is one of those moments.<\/p>\n
\u201cSome things are simply too important to sell. The FIFA World Cup belongs to football. It always will. And so long as Europe has a voice, it will never be for sale.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"UEFA](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/GettyImages-2207678892-scaled.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
\n UEFA made up of 55 member associations and led by its president, Aleksander Ceferin (Pedrag Milosavljevic\/AFP via Getty Images)<\/p>\n
UEFA was also critical of how FIFA\u2019s proposal came to light, firstly through a report in the Times of London and then in a press release from world football\u2019s governing body: \u201cIt is both irresponsible and indefensible that a proposal of such significance for football was conceived in secret and brought to the brink of approval without any meaningful consultation with those entrusted with stewarding the game.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is not merely a profound failure of leadership, but an abdication of FIFA\u2019s duty as the custodian of world football. National associations around the world are now presented with an ultimatum: accept the irreversible capture of football\u2019s greatest competitions or bear the consequences. This is not a \u2018democratic decision\u2019, but governance by intimidation \u2014 an act of coercion unworthy of an institution entrusted with the stewardship of the global game.\u201d<\/p>\n
How the rest of the world reacted<\/strong><\/p>\nFIFA\u2019s plans were met with backlash on Tuesday. Infantino\u2019s predecessor Sepp Blatter and UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham were among them, while European football\u2019s governing body UEFA said: \u201cThis crosses a line that football\u2019s governing institutions should never cross.\u201d<\/p>\n
Multiple confederations took issue with the process FIFA had followed. This included Concacaf, which accused FIFA of a lack of consultation regarding the proposals.<\/p>\n
\u201cConcacaf was only made aware of this matter through media reports and, subsequently, via a media release,\u201d a statement read. \u201cWe are deeply concerned by the lack of due process.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Asian confederation also said it was \u201cdisappointed that a matter of such significance entered the public domain before the AFC family had been afforded the opportunity to examine and discuss it through the appropriate and established governance channels.\u201d<\/p>\n
The African confederation, however, only commented to confirm its involvement in the consulting process, \u201cencourag(ing) its Member Associations to examine\u201d the proposals themselves.<\/p>\n
Infantino subsequently defended the idea on Wednesday in an interview with FIFA, the organisation he leads. In a five-minute video he said it was a \u201cdemocratic process\u201d and \u201cstrengthening the commercial side of the game is the natural next step in (FIFA\u2019s) evolution\u201d.<\/p>\n
He also reiterated that it the proposals would only be implemented if the majority of the 211 Member Associations and the FIFA Council, making it \u201cnot an obligation\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cFIFA obviously continues to govern football without any external interference,\u201d Infantino added. \u201cAnd the flagship tournament it organises, like the FIFA World Cup or the FIFA Women\u2019s World Cup, will always remain.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"European nations have agreed to boycott the World Cup over FIFA\u2019s plans to sell stakes in the tournament…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":969338,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[10],"tags":[32299,2841,4740,110,111,291963,4214,2147,179321,12575,311903,32868,252300,14609,61348,9249,6026,148962,156,117,30987,8884,2842,83,4785,30656,170,18151,33687,59368,6576,23133,18242,1608,53137,124,220,6673,271,6313,39761,221,2241,15243,128,62,222,129,16997,13125,24922,67,132,66745,68,33686,101292],"class_list":["post-969337","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sports","tag-algeria","tag-argentina","tag-australia","tag-austria","tag-belgium","tag-bosnia-herzegovina","tag-brazil","tag-canada","tag-cape-verde","tag-colombia","tag-congo-dr","tag-croatia","tag-curacao","tag-czech-republic","tag-ecuador","tag-egypt","tag-england","tag-fifa-mens-world-cup","tag-france","tag-germany","tag-ghana","tag-haiti","tag-international-football","tag-iran","tag-iraq","tag-ivory-coast","tag-japan","tag-jordan","tag-mexico-mens-national-team","tag-morocco","tag-netherlands","tag-new-zealand","tag-norway","tag-panama","tag-paraguay","tag-portugal","tag-premier-league","tag-qatar","tag-saudi-arabia","tag-scotland","tag-senegal","tag-soccer","tag-south-africa","tag-south-korea","tag-spain","tag-sports","tag-sports-business","tag-sweden","tag-switzerland","tag-tunisia","tag-turkey","tag-united-states","tag-unitedstates","tag-uruguay","tag-us","tag-us-mens-national-team","tag-uzbekistan"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":"Validation failed: Text character limit of 500 exceeded"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/969337","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=969337"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/969337\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/969338"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=969337"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=969337"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=969337"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}