World

FIFA abandons plan to open its competitions to private investors

Herz — World Desk · 1 August 2026 at 14:48 · 30s summary · 3 min read

The essentials

FIFA officially abandoned plans on August 1, 2026, to create a commercial subsidiary and sell a 20% stake to private investors. FIFA Forward Enterprise would have managed commercial activities and events, including the World Cup. UEFA welcomed the withdrawal but called for a comprehensive investigation, identification of those responsible and accountability. All 55 UEFA member associations and Concacaf’s 41 members had rejected the proposal. UEFA also plans to work with other confederations on a new method for distributing resources through the existing FIFA Forward program.

FIFA has abandoned the planned sale of 20% of its new subsidiary.
The World Cup was among the competitions covered by the proposal.
UEFA is calling for an investigation and accountability.
All 55 UEFA associations and Concacaf’s 41 members rejected the plan.

What we know

FIFA officially abandoned plans on August 1, 2026, to create a subsidiary to commercialize its competitions and sell a stake in that business.

According to El País, the proposal covered activities linked to the World Cup and other FIFA events. It envisaged selling 20% of the new entity to private investors.

The planned company was called FIFA Forward Enterprise. It would have operated as a commercial subsidiary open to minority private investors.

UEFA calls for an investigation

UEFA, the Union of European Football Associations, welcomed the withdrawal but called for a comprehensive investigation and the identification of those responsible.

UEFA also demanded accountability, saying FIFA’s current leadership had lost its confidence and that of many other football stakeholders.

In the days and weeks after August 1, UEFA plans to work with its member associations and other confederations to establish how the proposal was developed.

The review is also intended to determine how a similar process can be prevented from happening again.

International opposition

UEFA says the proposal was unanimously rejected by Europe’s national football associations and opposed by many other associations and confederations worldwide.

All 55 UEFA member associations rejected the transfer of stakes in the World Cup and other FIFA competitions to private investors.

UEFA had threatened not to participate in FIFA competitions if the governing body maintained the proposal.

Concacaf, which represents associations in North America, Central America and the Caribbean, also rejected the proposal together with its 41 members.

Timeline

July 31, 2026
FIFA continues consulting on opening its planned subsidiary to minority private investors.
August 1, 2026
FIFA officially abandons the subsidiary and the planned sale of a stake linked to its competitions.
After August 1, 2026
UEFA plans to work with its associations and other confederations to examine how the proposal was developed.