Headline: UEFA President Ceferin Criticizes FIFA’s Infantino Over World Cup Stake Plan
Uefa president Aleksander Ceferin has expressed his strong disapproval of FIFA president Gianni Infantino’s proposal to sell off a stake in the World Cup, labeling it “worse than the Super League.” This statement comes after FIFA abandoned the plan to establish a new company, FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE), which would manage the commercial and ticketing rights of all FIFA competitions, with 21% of ownership to be sold to a private investment firm.
Uefa led the resistance against the initiative, with its members voting to boycott World Cups if the proposal went forward.
Following the uproar, Uefa stated it has lost confidence in Infantino, and the football associations of the home nations have also retracted their support for the 56-year-old Swiss official.
Ceferin commented on the matter during an appearance on the Rest is Politics podcast, saying, “I think this plan is even worse than the Super League plan. Super important clubs wanted to do their own league, which is wrong and would destroy football. But in this case, football would be literally sold.” He remains adamant that this plan will not be permitted to proceed, stating, “It’s hard to imagine what kind of people would sell the sport that belongs to everyone.”
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The proposed European Super League sought to establish a rival league to Uefa’s Champions League but was abandoned shortly after its April 2021 announcement due to intense backlash.
Ceferin further disclosed that Uefa had no prior indication of Infantino’s plans and learned about them through media reports while on holiday. He expressed disappointment that Infantino had not reached out since the news broke.
Infantino, who previously worked at Uefa for 16 years, has been actively seeking support from various global football communities. Most recently, he engaged with Caribbean Football Union members in the Dominican Republic and attended the E-Sports World Cup in Paris, which was also graced by notable figures including French President Emmanuel Macron.
Ceferin criticizes ‘shocking’ Balogun decision
Additionally, Ceferin confirmed he will not pursue the presidency at FIFA during the upcoming Congress in March 2027, a term that Infantino is expected to seek for a fourth time. “I’m not interested because of two reasons,” he stated. “One reason is that I love Uefa and I love working here, and I think that at a certain point it’s time also to enjoy life a bit. And the second point is, my credibility is much, much, much higher if I’m not interested in the position.”
In light of questions surrounding Infantino’s leadership, including his interactions with United States President Donald Trump, Ceferin denounced the recent move to overturn US striker Folarin Balogun’s red card suspension. Trump revealed he personally contacted Infantino to lift the ban, which Ceferin found alarming, stating, “That was more than shocking. We have rules, and if you don’t respect your own rules, then the game doesn’t make any sense.”
The situation has ruffled feathers in the football community, as Ceferin noted that many were unsettled by the implications of presidential involvement in disciplinary decisions, even if they did not voice their concerns publicly.
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Uefa president Aleksander Ceferin says Gianni Infantino needs to remember he is European after describing his Fifa counterpart’s plan to sell off a stake in the World Cup as “worse than the Super League”.
Earlier this month the world governing body abandoned Infantino’s proposal to create a new company – Fifa Forward Enterprise (FFE) – to manage the commercial and ticketing rights of all Fifa competitions, with 21% to be sold off to a private investment company.
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Uefa led opposition to the plan, with its members voting to boycott World Cups unless it was scrapped.
European football’s governing body has since said it has lost confidence in Infantino, while the football associations of all the home nations have withdrawn support for the 56-year-old Swiss.
“I think this plan is even worse than the Super League plan,” Ceferin told the Rest is Politics podcast.
“Super important clubs wanted to do their own league, which is wrong, and would destroy football. But in this case, football would be literally sold.
“I’m absolutely sure that the plan is dead. It’s hard to to imagine what kind of people would sell the sport that belongs to everyone. We will not allow that to happen.”
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The European Super League was a proposed breakaway league of 20 top European clubs as a rival to Uefa’s Champions League, but the project fell apart days after its unveiling in April 2021 after widespread criticism.
Ceferin said that Uefa had no prior knowledge of Infantino’s plan, and that he found out through the media while on holiday with his family.
“He didn’t contact me since this happened,” Ceferin said.
“They [Fifa] play on, you know, ‘[how] arrogant Europe is against us: They have enough money, but I help the small and the poor’.
“But I think someone should remind him that he is a European, and that he was supported by Uefa, which he forgot.”
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Infantino – who worked at Uefa for 16 years, and was general secretary for nine – has been flying around the world in the search of public support.
On Saturday, he met with Caribbean Football Union members in the Dominican Republic and on Sunday he was at the E-Sports World Cup in Paris, attended by the French President Emmanuel Macron, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Portugal forward Cristiano Ronaldo.
Ceferin criticises ‘shocking’ Balogun decision
Ceferin confirmed he would not run to become Fifa president at the Fifa Congress in March 2027, when Infantino will look to secure a fourth term in the role.
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“I’m not interested because of two reasons. One reason is that I love Uefa and I love working here, and I think that at a certain point it’s time also to enjoy life a bit,” the 58-year-old Slovenian said.
“And the second point is, my credibility is much, much, much higher if I’m not interested in the position.”
Before his aborted FFE proposal, Infantino was coming under increasing pressure over his relationship with United States President Donald Trump.
After US striker Folarin Balogun had a red card suspension overturned so that he could play in his side’s defeat by Belgium in the last 16 of this summer’s World Cup, Trump revealed he personally called Infantino to request the sanction be lifted.
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Earlier this month, Trump said it would be a “terrible mistake” to remove Infantino as Fifa president.
“That was more than shocking. We have rules, and if you don’t respect your own rules, then the game doesn’t make any sense,” Ceferin said on the incident.
“The president of a country says: ‘I called him, and I told him to look at it.’ And then the Fifa president says it was an independent decision.
“I mean, for us as football fans, or for us as a governing body, that’s shocking. That’s shocking, and – trust me – almost everybody was shocked. Just not everybody dared to speak.”
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