Fifa abandons plan to sell World Cup stake after backlash

Fifa president Gianni Infantino announced on 31 July 2026 that the governing body has dropped proposals to sell a stake in the World Cup to private investors after widespread backlash. ‘This proposal will not proceed,’ confirms Fifa president.

Infantino issued a statement saying the contentious scheme would be halted, bringing an end to a plan that had attracted criticism. The proposal had envisaged the sale of a stake in World Cup revenues to private investors, a move described in Fifa communications as part of a broader commercial strategy. Debate around the idea prompted intense scrutiny from stakeholders across the sport.

On announcing the decision Infantino said: “Having listened carefully to all the views, it has become clear that the project has created divisions of a nature that, regardless of the level of support, are no longer in the interest of the objective set out in the first place,” Infantino said. Those words framed the rationale given by the Fifa president for withdrawing the plan and acknowledged the breadth of response the proposal provoked.

The statement formally ended what Fifa described as a project intended to explore private investment in the World Cup. The organisation’s public materials made clear the proposal had become a focal point for debate within football circles, and the announcement signals a cessation of that avenue of commercial development.

The decision was issued as a clear confirmation that the idea will not move forward; Fifa’s public messaging used the term “controversial” to characterise the scheme. Infantino’s remarks pointed to unity of purpose as a priority, indicating the governance body will not pursue measures seen as divisive.

The move closes a chapter on the proposal to monetise part of the World Cup through private stakes and returns the matter to Fifa’s internal processes and membership discussion. The president’s statement and the accompanying confirmation mark an explicit withdrawal of the plan from Fifa’s agenda.

The announcement, published on 31 July 2026, ends the immediate debate over selling World Cup stakes to private investors and confirms that Fifa will not proceed with the project.