Rebellion against G. Infantino's plans: he will watch matches in Fiji and the Green Cape

2026-07-31 15:59 © scanpix

European football figures are standing against FIFA President Gianni Infantino's plans to sell shares of the World Cup.

UEFA has generally announced that it is ready to boycott the World Cup if such ambitions are realized.

Philippe Diallo, President of the French Football Federation (FFF), called the FIFA project "concerning” and "worrying.” In an interview with "L'Equipe,” he stated that he learned about it only from the media and did not receive any prior information.

"We do not know either the philosophy of this project, its necessity, or its financial structure,” he added.

German Uli Hoeness stated, "If Europeans are truly united and consistent in their actions, Mr. Infantino's plan will not succeed. If he wants to see matches between Fiji and the Green Islands in the World Cup, that is what he will get.”

The Danish Football Union compared the situation to the Super League attempt five years ago: "We are very surprised by this process – such a significant proposal for international football was prepared in advance, without involving either FIFA member associations or the FIFA Council. This raises unpleasant associations with how the Super League was introduced in April 2021 – as if a thief was sneaking in at night.”

CONCACAF members held a meeting. The result was a unified position against Mr. Infantino's plans: "To us, football is the most important thing. We doubt whether direct investments are needed after the most profitable tournament in history.”

The U.S. Soccer Federation stated, "We support the position of CONCACAF and its members.”

Meanwhile, Said Ali Saïd Athouman, President of the Comoros Football Association, did not encourage solidarity with Europe – according to him, the main problem is the lack of money and sponsors.

"We are not saying that African countries are for or against, but we cannot reject a proposal without examining it,” Athouman asserted.

He added, "We also want FIFA to preserve its values and not create a company solely for profit. But if we were to receive 20 million dollars under certain conditions, it would be a huge amount for us! It is difficult for us to even pay salaries to employees.”

People do not understand what we are facing. From the FIFA budget, we receive just over a million dollars. We allocate 30% of this amount to the men's national team (otherwise, the ministry would take care of it), and we have to finance all the other national teams ourselves. The state covers hotels and bonuses for matches. But we also have referees and employees.

It is reported that the African Football Confederation will discuss FIFA's proposal in the coming days.