Gianni Infantino Says Sorry For World Cup Sell-Off Bid

Infantino under pressure ahead of FIFA Election after failed FFE plan

FIFA president Gianni Infantino has apologised for his failed plan to sell stakes in the World Cup to private investors, but faced criticism for providing “no satisfactory answers” when grilled by senior members of football's global governing body.

Infantino apologises over failed World Cup sell-off plan but critics remain unhappy...

FIFA president Gianni Infantino failed to provide “satisfactory answers” when questioned on Thursday at a meeting to discuss his attempt to sell stakes in the World Cup to private investors, according to senior members of football's global governing body, though he did apologise for the failed plan.

“We asked a great many critical questions, but there were no satisfactory answers from my point of view,” said Bernd Neuendorf, president of the German Football Association (DFB) and a member of the FIFA Council.

Neuendorf was speaking after the Council met behind closed doors at FIFA's Zurich headquarters, where Infantino's FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE) proposal was among the main items on the agenda.

Infantino has come under intense pressure since announcing in late July that he wanted to open up FIFA's premium competitions, including the World Cup, to private investors.

That plan was ultimately scrapped following widespread backlash, with opposition led by European governing body UEFA, the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and CONCACAF, which oversees football in North and Central America and the Caribbean.

“I think we had the opportunity to say what we felt, and we spoke a lot about the issues,” Debbie Hewitt, chair of the English Football Association and FIFA vice-president, told reporters, adding that Infantino had apologised.

“I think it is fair to say Gianni apologised at the beginning for what had happened, and he said that with some contrition, and then there were no holds barred in terms of what we felt about what happened.”

Hewitt and Neuendorf are among the 36 members of the FIFA Council, which also includes Infantino.

NEW | “We didn’t get answers to anything we had specifically requested…” FA chair Debbie Hewitt says FIFA president Gianni Infantino failed to provide clarity over World Cup sell-off plot at Council meeting, but “apologised for what had happened…” #fifa https://t.co/QNdol3UL01

— Dan Roan (@danroan) October 15, 2026

Infantino has led FIFA since 2016 and is seeking re-election next March, despite calls for him to step down following the FFE proposal.

For now, no major candidate has come forward to challenge him.

“We were asked to submit our questions” regarding the plan, which had not been presented to the FIFA Council before the announcement in July, Hewitt said.

“One of the disappointing things was we didn't get answers. We didn't get answers to anything we had specifically requested, for example, getting the papers from FFE, and so we asked the question why and why not.”

Trust Still Broken

Many leading European national associations have withdrawn their backing for Infantino in the upcoming election due to the uproar over FFE and other controversies, including his close relationship with US President Donald Trump.

Among the most contentious were Infantino's decision to create a FIFA Peace Prize and present it to Trump at last December's World Cup draw, and the move to overturn a ban for United States striker Folarin Balogun following his red card during the World Cup after Trump personally intervened by calling Infantino.

“I speak for myself as a Council member - from my position nothing has shifted,” Hewitt added.

“I have no new information that makes me feel any differently to how I felt when I went in, other than we do have a president of FIFA who is apologetic about what has happened, and secondly a promise again that we will get the information that we have requested.”

FIFA was expected to present a proposal at the Council meeting to establish a $6.35 billion (£4.79m) development fund covering the next four years.

While Gianni Infantino has plenty of critics, his supporters are in the majority on the Fifa Council today. Only 13 of the 36 are confirmed opponents, with 20 backing the 56-year-old. But the 13 are a strong power base. Infantino will need to offer conciliatory changes. https://t.co/5Ndv9zzOYk

— Dale Johnson (@DaleJohnsonBBC) October 15, 2026

To finance the development fund, which would see money distributed to FIFA's 211 member federations as well as the regional confederations, it planned to draw in part on its financial reserves following a commercially successful 2026 World Cup.

Under the proposal, each of the 211 member federations would receive $25 million (£18.85m).

Infantino will be hoping the latest proposal helps strengthen his position ahead of the election.

The deadline for submitting candidacies is November 18.