Top FIFA officials Wenger and Grafström distance themselves from Infantino’s World Cup sell-off plan
Summary
Two top FIFA officials, Arsène Wenger and Mattias Grafström, publicly said they were not involved in FIFA President Gianni Infantino’s rejected plan to sell future World Cup profits to private investors. The plan faced strong criticism and was withdrawn after causing unrest among global soccer organizations and staff.Key Facts
- FIFA President Gianni Infantino proposed selling parts of FIFA’s future World Cup earnings to investors in a $20 billion deal.
- Arsène Wenger, FIFA’s Chief of Global Football Development, said he did not know about the plan and supported dropping it.
- Mattias Grafström, FIFA’s general secretary, called recent events “sad and reproachable” and said staff were upset and confused.
- Kevin Lamour, FIFA’s chief operating officer, criticized the plan as the “project of one person” and said staff felt deceived.
- Infantino withdrew the proposal after a strong backlash, including threats of boycotts by UEFA, Europe’s soccer governing body.
- The plan involved creating a new company to manage FIFA’s money-making activities, including organizing tournaments and selling TV rights.
- Wenger, Grafström, and Lamour are trusted by FIFA’s member countries, which now influence Infantino’s presidency.
- UEFA’s lawyers requested the retention of data from several FIFA executives as part of an investigation linked to the controversy.
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