After EU threatens World Cup boycott, FIFA responds: No one sells football

FIFA issued an official clarification regarding the proposed “FIFA Forward Enterprise” project, reaffirming its full commitment to conducting open and democratic consultations with all member associations, and emphasizing that erroneous media reports were responsible for disrupting the planned consultation process. Several continental confederations, most notably UEFA, had strongly objected to the proposal, pledging to boycott all FIFA competitions, including the World Cup, if the project were to proceed.

FIFA issued clarifications that included responses to the expressed comments and concerns, stating in a press release: “We have listened to the observations and concerns raised by the relevant continental confederations regarding the proposed establishment of the FIFA Forward Enterprise project, and we wish to address the issues that have emerged since the initial media reports last Tuesday.”

FIFA reaffirmed its position on consultations, saying: “We respect the comments and concerns expressed publicly, and we reiterate our commitment to conducting open and democratic consultations. The planned consultation process has been disrupted by inaccurate media reports, and we will proceed with this process to ensure that every member association can exercise its right to vote based on the facts.”

The international federation explained the objectives of the proposal, clarifying: “The project was proposed solely to ensure that all FIFA member associations have the opportunity to meaningfully own the commercial rights to football in their respective countries, and that this does not come at the expense of the spirit of the game, its governance, or FIFA’s own governance.”

FIFA categorically denied circulating rumors, stating: “No one is selling football. This is something FIFA would never consider.”

Emphasizing democratic rights for all, it added: “Everyone has the right to express their opposition and request further clarifications, but no single entity can claim to represent all 211 member associations worldwide. Every member association must be given the opportunity to review the proposal and have a say in shaping its own future; this is the democratic principle of FIFA.”

The international federation outlined the details of the financial and regulatory proposal, noting that the “FIFA Forward Enterprise” project would transfer the commercial and regulatory activities for organizing FIFA events to a subsidiary permanently owned and managed by FIFA. The newly generated commercial value would be distributed among all 211 member associations, enabling each association to make tangible investments in football within its own country.

FIFA revealed financing details, explaining that under the proposal, each member association would receive $20 million in funding from “FIFA Forward Development” over the next four years (2027–2030), regardless of its individual stance on the project. This increase in funding would come from additional revenues generated by the “FIFA Forward Enterprise” project through more efficient management of FIFA’s commercial operations, benefiting all member associations.

FIFA clarified the details of the “FIFA Fast Forward” program, noting that it represents an exceptional one-time development funding of an additional $20 million per member association. Participation in this program would be entirely voluntary for all member associations if the “FIFA Forward Enterprise” proposal continues. It would be funded through external investments without ceding control or altering FIFA’s governance structure in any way. FIFA emphasized that without the support of a majority of member associations, FIFA’s commercial activities would remain unchanged, and the “FIFA Forward Enterprise” project would not be established.

The international federation indicated that these components represent the starting point of the consultation process and are open for discussion as part of this process, which may include approval, rejection, or modification of the proposal, either in its entirety or on an item-by-item basis.