Uefa to commission valuation amid questions over Infantino’s World Cup sale plan
Uefa is preparing to commission an independent valuation to determine whether Fifa president Gianni Infantino agreed to sell future World Cup profits at below market value, after Infantino issued a written apology to Fifa’s 211 member associations on Tuesday following crisis talks in Morocco.
The proposal under scrutiny was the Fifa Forward Enterprise plan, which would have sold a 21% stake to Thrive Capital for $4.2bn; Thrive is led by Joshua Kushner. Uefa, which remains unmoved by Infantino’s apology and will continue to push for his removal, played a central role in forcing a U-turn after all 55 of its member associations threatened last week to boycott the World Cup and other tournaments. Infantino belatedly conceded the proposal was “a mistake.”
Uefa is seeking to establish how Fifa arrived at a $20bn valuation for its commercial assets and has identified shortcomings in the materials circulated to member associations. The sales deck, according to Uefa sources, did not include information on the valuation process or any evidence of a competitive tender. “We need to find out if they were selling the World Cup at a knockdown price,” a source with knowledge of Uefa’s plans said. “How did they get to $20bn? Was it a robust process?”
Market figures cited in discussions show Fifa reported revenues of $15bn for the four-year cycle that culminated in this summer’s World Cup, prompting analysts to question a $20bn valuation, particularly given the sale plan’s apparent omission of protections against further tournament expansion. “The World Cup is the only genuinely global mass entertainment event so an increase of $5bn on current revenues seems low to me,” the source said. “This looks like a low-ball offer. The obvious financial upside of further expansion that the investors would demand – more teams, more regular World Cups, more Club World Cups – is not priced in.”
Beyond financial concerns, Uefa has called for a thorough review of Fifa’s governance and has threatened legal action as part of its response to the proposal. Leading Fifa figures reportedly voiced internal criticism of the sell-off plan, including the secretary general, Mattias Grafström, the chief operating officer, Kevin Lamour, and Arsène Wenger, head of football development.
After crisis talks in Rabat, Infantino appeared alongside Grafström at a Women’s Africa Cup of Nations group game between Malawi and Zambia in Morocco on Wednesday. Fifa then issued a statement saying the president retained the “full support” of the organisation. Such apparent backing from within Fifa, the coverage says, suggests there will be no further dissent internally and that pressure for change will need to come from outside the organisation; Fifa was approached for comment.
Uefa have already spoken to several market analysts seeking opinions on an independent valuation, and a formal study is likely to follow once the storm surrounding Infantino’s immediate future has passed.