IFA has accused UEFA of launching a “smear campaign” against its leadership as a legal dispute over Gianni Infantino’s abandoned plan to sell a stake in a new commercial subsidiary to private investors intensifies.
The latest development comes after UEFA filed legal papers in the United States seeking access to evidence and documents from FIFA as part of potential criminal proceedings in Switzerland.
In its filing, UEFA accused Infantino of “criminal mismanagement” and alleged that the proposed FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE) scheme involved a “fraudulently off-market price” promoted by the FIFA president for his own benefit.
FIFA has now responded through court filings lodged in the US and seen by the BBC, asking the court to delay or reject UEFA’s request for access to its documents.
The world governing body argued that UEFA’s case “suffers from a fundamental defect” and contains “legal deficiencies”.
“UEFA seeks discovery in aid of a foreign criminal proceeding that does not exist and that UEFA admittedly lacks the authority to initiate,” FIFA said in its filing.
It added that UEFA was seeking “sweeping discovery” relating to FFE despite the alleged lack of a valid foreign criminal proceeding.
FIFA maintained that the creation of FFE was only a proposal and could have gone ahead only if a majority of its member associations supported it and the FIFA Council granted the necessary approvals.
“Rather than participate in that democratic process, UEFA issued a press release – the beginning of a weeks-long smear campaign against FIFA and its leadership,” FIFA stated.
The organisation also accused UEFA of having an “economic motivation”, claiming the European governing body wanted to prevent smaller football nations from gaining the financial resources needed to compete with established European powers.
FIFA argued that strengthening football in developing countries would increase global competition and potentially reduce UEFA’s market power, while also creating greater competition for its flagship tournaments.
It said the proposed FFE scheme would have provided additional funding to smaller member associations, potentially allowing them to develop their domestic football structures and encourage more players to represent their countries of origin.
Kushner and Maffei drawn into legal dispute
UEFA has separately asked a New York court to approve a legal process seeking testimony and documents from venture capitalist Joshua Kushner and his company, Thrive Capital.
Kushner, the brother of US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, had been identified as the prospective lead investor in the FFE project.
Thrive had held discussions with Infantino over a proposed $4.2 billion investment for a 20% stake in a new FIFA commercial subsidiary. The proposal was abandoned days after details emerged publicly in July, triggering widespread criticism.
FIFA had previously said the scheme would have increased the funding allocated to each national association for the 2027–2030 cycle from approximately £5.9 million to £14.7 million.
Kushner expressed regret over the controversy on Sunday, saying that while he continued to support the motivations behind FFE, he had underestimated the political dynamics surrounding global football.
“Had we known what this would devolve into, we would not have gotten involved,” he said.
UEFA has also sought documents from American financier Greg Maffei, who was reportedly a key adviser in the proposed transaction.
Although UEFA says neither Kushner nor Maffei is expected to be a defendant in any potential proceedings, its lawyers claim the two first discussed the FFE concept in July 2025.
UEFA further alleges that Infantino had been discussing the underlying proposal with Kushner for almost a year before the terms sheet was signed.
UEFA challenges valuation of World Cup
At the centre of UEFA’s allegations is the valuation of the World Cup and the proposed commercial structure.
UEFA’s lawyers argue that the World Cup was deliberately undervalued at approximately £15 billion, describing the figure as one that was neither established through an open and competitive auction nor independently assessed by a professional valuer.
The European governing body also alleges that Infantino failed to properly consult FIFA’s leadership structure before pursuing the proposal.
UEFA has declined to comment publicly on FIFA’s latest court filing. However, sources familiar with the organisation’s position have indicated that UEFA believes FIFA should disclose the requested documents and allow the legal process to move forward if there is nothing to conceal.
The dispute represents a significant escalation in the growing opposition to Infantino’s leadership, with three continental confederations reportedly calling for him to step down.
The legal battle in the United States could now determine how much information surrounding the abandoned FFE proposal becomes public as the rival football authorities continue their increasingly bitter confrontation.
