FIFA’s legal representatives have accused UEFA of harassing Gianni Infantino, as they filed a court document in Florida urging a judge to reject UEFA’s request for evidence regarding a private investor plan for the World Cup that caused a stir in the sport.
The 21-page filing submitted to the court in the Southern District of Florida on Monday, as revealed by The Associated Press, disputed UEFA’s claim that the FIFA president aimed to personally benefit from the project that sparked controversy in July and was swiftly abandoned.
UEFA sought permission for discovery from three courts, including in Manhattan against Josh Kushner’s New York-based investment company, and in Miami, where FIFA has offices, with the goal of aiding a potential criminal complaint against Infantino in Switzerland for financial mismanagement.
FIFA’s lawyers argued in the document that UEFA’s actions indicate bad faith and harassment. They also highlighted the upcoming deadline on November 18 for potential candidates to join the FIFA presidential election in March in Morocco, where Infantino intends to run for a final term until 2031.
The court filing emphasized that any attempt to influence FIFA’s presidential election on these grounds should be rejected. UEFA has been leading a global backlash against the FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE) plan and is preparing to challenge Infantino in the upcoming election.
Infantino’s proposal involved establishing the FFE subsidiary and selling a minimum of 20% of FIFA’s future commercial rights for $4.2 billion to investors led by Josh Kushner, the brother of Jared Kushner, son-in-law of former U.S. President Donald Trump.
UEFA had previously alleged that the valuation was inflated by Infantino for personal gain, suggesting that he sought a lucrative role at the subsidiary with a higher salary than his current $6 million presidential compensation.
FIFA’s legal team refuted UEFA’s claims, stating that Infantino did not have a personal financial interest in the FFE project. The secretive nature of the plan was unveiled through media reports on July 28, leading to criticism from FIFA’s former chief operating officer and the resignation of Infantino’s senior adviser.
Infantino acknowledged mistakes in handling the sell-off plan and offered an independent external review of FIFA’s governance. The organization maintained that the commercial spinoff aimed to boost global soccer development beyond Europe’s affluent sphere.
In a separate development, Infantino informed FIFA’s 211 member federations of the possibility of increasing payments from cash reserves. This follows calls from critics at UEFA, CONCACAF, and the AFC for FIFA to distribute a $10 million dividend to each member from its $6 billion cash reserves.
Infantino had initially proposed a $20 million payout to each member, pending approval of the FFE project by a mid-September deadline. The upcoming FIFA Council meeting on October 15, chaired by Infantino, will address financial and governance proposals as part of managing the aftermath of the controversial World Cup sell-off plan.
