The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) has initiated criminal legal proceedings against FIFA and its president, Gianni Infantino, over a shelved proposal to sell stakes in the commercial rights of the World Cup and other FIFA competitions to private investors.
Documents seen by BBC Sport on Thursday showed that UEFA had filed an application in a U.S. federal court seeking access to documents and testimony that could be used in planned criminal proceedings in Switzerland against Infantino and potentially other FIFA officials and advisers.
The legal action stems from an announcement made by Infantino on July 28, 2026, outlining plans to transfer the commercial rights to the men’s and women’s World Cups, as well as the Club World Cup, to a newly created FIFA subsidiary known as FIFA Forward Enterprise.
According to UEFA’s application, the plan was made public without prior consultation with the FIFA Council, UEFA, other continental confederations or any of FIFA’s 211 member associations.
The application stated: “On July 28, 2026, without consulting the FIFA Council, UEFA, or any of the other confederations, or any of the 211 FIFA member associations, Infantino, purportedly acting on behalf of FIFA, publicly announced a plan to place the commercial rights to the men’s and women’s World Cups and the Club World Cup into a new subsidiary: FIFA Forward Enterprise.”
UEFA further alleged that the proposal had been developed behind closed doors for more than a year by Infantino and a small group of associates before it was publicly unveiled.
That announcement by Infantino was the public unveiling of a plan that he and a small circle of co-conspirators had conceived and reportedly been developing in secret for more than a year,” the application said.
Although the proposed investment arrangement has since been abandoned, UEFA’s decision to pursue legal action could place FIFA’s governance structure and its handling of commercial rights to major tournaments under increased scrutiny.
The case is being pursued in Switzerland, where FIFA has its headquarters.
As part of the proceedings, UEFA is seeking access to documents and other evidence it considers relevant to its case against FIFA and Infantino.
