Europe threatens World Cup boycott over FIFA investment plan

UEFA, the governing body of European football, has voted unanimously to boycott the World Cup if FIFA adopts a controversial proposal to privatize part of its commercial operations. The vote was confirmed to POLITICO by Thomas Giordano, a spokesperson for UEFA. FIFA published a proposal on Tuesday to spin off its commercial operations to a private entity, with Thrive Capital, whose CEO is Josh Kushner — the brother of U.S. President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner — announced as the lead investor. “The World Cup cannot be treated as an investment product,” said UEFA in a statement. “No part of it should ever be surrendered to private investors. The World Cup is not for sale.” The proposal would require the backing of a majority of FIFA’s 211 member associations, but it has been met with strong scrutiny across Europe. Although UEFA only consists of 55 member associations, it has won the majority of men’s World Cups since 1930. “The FIFA World Cup belongs to football. It always will. And so long as Europe has a voice, it will never be for sale,” the statement reads. European Union Commissioner for Sport Glenn Micallef said on X: “I welcome this UEFA statement and fully support its position,” adding that he was “proud to see Europe’s football associations leading on governance.” On Wednesday, the commissioner threatened to investigate FIFA’s proposal over “competition law considerations.” While the next men’s World Cup is almost four years away, the women’s U-20 World Cup is due to take place in September and could prove to be the first test of European football associations’ resolve in following through with the boycott if FIFA doesn’t abandon its plans. Women’s and men’s under-17 World Cups are also due to take place later in 2026, with the full women’s World Cup — which was last won by Spain in 2023 — due to take place in Brazil in 2027. POLITICO reported on Wednesday that a number of senior officials in European football’s governing body are looking to mount an opposition candidate against FIFA President Gianni Infantino, whose current term is up next year. Joe Stanley-Smith contributed to this report. This article has been updated.