Infantino Apologizes Without Providing 'Satisfactory Answers' During FIFA Meeting on World Cup Plan

Senior officials at the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) stated that its president, Gianni Infantino, did not provide “satisfactory answers” when he was questioned on Thursday during a meeting dedicated to discussing his attempt to sell stakes in the World Cup to private investors, although he did apologize for the project, which ultimately failed.

Bernd Neuendorf, president of the German Football Association and a FIFA council member, said, “We raised a large number of critical questions, but in my view, there were no satisfactory answers.”

Neuendorf was speaking after a closed-door FIFA Council meeting at the organization’s headquarters in Zurich, where Infantino’s “FIFA Forward Enterprise” proposal was one of the most prominent items on the agenda.

Infantino has faced intense pressure since he announced in late July his intention to open the door to private investors participating in FIFA’s most important tournaments, such as the World Cup.

However, the plan was ultimately scrapped amid widespread criticism, following a rebellion led by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), the Asian Football Confederation, and the Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF).

In a video released by FIFA, Infantino said, “I apologized for the mistakes we made regarding the communication and consultation process related to the FIFA Forward Enterprise project.”

He continued, “But what is important to remember is that it was merely a proposal, and by no means a finalized agreement; it was only a proposal whose actual aim was to enable FIFA to invest more in our member associations.”

Nevertheless, the FIFA president reiterated that the “FIFA Forward Enterprise” initiative “has been permanently withdrawn and will not reappear in any form.”

Debbie Hewitt, president of The Football Association and FIFA vice president, told journalists, “I believe we were given the opportunity to express how we feel, and we spoke extensively about these issues,” before adding that Infantino had offered an apology.

She added, “I think it is fair to say that Gianni initially apologized for what happened, and did so with a sense of regret, after which the discussion was fully open regarding our feelings about what occurred.”

Hewitt and Neuendorf are among the 36 members of the FIFA Council, alongside Infantino.

Infantino has led the international federation since 2016 and intends to run for a new term in March next year, despite calls for his resignation following the “FIFA Forward Enterprise” plan.

At present, no prominent candidate has announced their intention to challenge him.

Hewitt said, “We were asked to submit our questions” regarding the plan, which was not presented to the FIFA Council before its announcement in July.

She added, “It is disappointing that we did not receive answers. We did not receive answers to any of the specific items we requested, such as obtaining the plan’s documents, so we asked why.”

Several major European national federations withdrew their support for Infantino in the upcoming elections due to the controversy sparked by the investment plan and other issues, including his relationship with US President Donald Trump.

Among the most prominent of these issues was Infantino’s decision to create the “FIFA Peace Award” and present it to Trump during the World Cup draw in December last year, as well as his decision to lift the suspension imposed on US forward Folarin Balogun after his red card during the World Cup, following direct intervention by Trump, who contacted Infantino personally.

Hewitt said, “I am speaking as a member of the Council. In my view, nothing has changed. I have no new information that would make me feel differently from what I felt when I entered the meeting, except that we now have a FIFA president who regrets what happened, and secondly, a renewed promise that we will receive the information we requested.”

The international federation was expected to present a plan at the Council meeting to establish a $6.35 billion development fund for the next four years.

To finance the fund, which will enable the distribution of money among FIFA’s 211 member associations as well as the continental confederations, a portion of the federation’s financial reserves will be used, following the anticipated commercial success of the 2026 World Cup.

The plan would allow each of the 211 member national associations to receive $25 million.

Infantino may hope that the latest plan will bolster his position ahead of the next elections.

The deadline for submitting candidacies is November 18.