Uefa threatens Fifa boycott over World Cup sale plan

UEFA and its member national associations announced on July 30, 2026, that they will boycott all FIFA competitions if President Gianni Infantino’s plan to sell a 20% stake in a subsidiary is approved.

It would run FIFA’s flagship events—including the World Cup—with funding from private investors such as Joshua Kushner, the brother of U.S. President Donald Trump’s son-in-law.

The boycott is activated if nations accept the deal by a September 19 deadline; those that do receive $20 million on Jan. 1.

European withdrawal could disrupt the U20 Women’s World Cup starting Sept. 5 in Poland and the Women’s World Cup play-offs in October, which involve England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

UEFA vice-president Laura McAllister said that “nobody can even countenance the thought of not being involved in those,” but stressed: “This is not a problem of UEFA’s making. It’s a problem that FIFA have created.”

Concacaf, which governs football in North and Central America, also rejected the proposals; its 41 members expressed a loss of faith in Infantino’s ability to govern.

The FA and Scottish FA backed UEFA’s stance. FA chair Debbie Hewitt, a FIFA vice-president, spoke out against the plan, while Scottish FA president Mike Mulraney, who chairs FIFA’s finance committee, said the organization “agrees unequivocally” with UEFA.

FIFA issued a statement claiming that consultation over the proposals “was disrupted by incorrect media reports” and insisted “nobody is selling football.”

Infantino, who became president in 2016 and is due to seek a fourth term in March, faces growing opposition and talk of a challenger.

Nasser Al-Khelaifi, chairman of European Football Clubs, has been mentioned but does not want the job, according to a source close to him.

Former FA chairman David Bernstein called the deal “a friends deal” that is “not acceptable” and said Infantino must back down: “I can’t believe in the long term that there will be a schism because it would be a lose-lose for everybody.”

The commercial impact of a European boycott would be seismic: UEFA supplied three of four semi-finalists in the last men’s World Cup, Women’s World Cup and Club World Cup.