Fifa rebuts Uefa filing, denies Infantino profited from shelved FFE plan
September 29, 2026 09:40
Fifa has accused Uefa of a "misinformation campaign" and of trying to influence the race for the Fifa presidency, according to new court documents filed in the Southern District of Florida. The world governing body was responding to a Uefa filing in the US that requested disclosure of evidence and documents and warned it could lodge a criminal complaint in Switzerland.
In its response, Fifa said Uefa's filing contained "numerous false or misleading statements about Fifa and Infantino" and added: "With no basis whatsoever, Uefa suggests that Mr Infantino sought to profit personally from the FFE proposal." Fifa further described Uefa's filing as "farcically overbroad" and said "districts faced with similar requests have outright rejected such applications".
KEY CONTEXT
Uefa accused Fifa president Gianni Infantino of "criminal mismanagement" and of proposing "a fraudulently off-market price promoted by [him] for his own benefit" over the now-shelved Fifa Forward Enterprise (FFE) scheme. The FFE plan proposed selling stakes in the World Cup and other competitions to private investors and sparked a major backlash.
The proposal has prompted calls for Infantino to stand down; he is facing calls to resign from three confederations. Earlier this month, Football Association chair Debbie Hewitt — who is also a Fifa vice-president — told Infantino to release all documents relating to the plan and called for an independent review of FFE.
BBC Sport has contacted Uefa for comment. BBC Sport has been told insiders believe that if Fifa has nothing to hide, it should disclose the documents and speed up the legal process.
WHAT HAPPENS NEXT
Infantino is due to stand for election for a fourth time in March 2027. Potential opponents have until 18 November to find an alternative candidate.