CONCACAF, the federation in charge of North American soccer, rejected on Thursday FIFA President Gianni Infantino’s announced plans to allow private investors to buy stakes in the World Cup.
The organization — which represents 41 member associations mainly in North America, Central America and the Caribbean — said it questioned the need for private equity investment following “the most profitable FIFA World Cup in history” in member nations Canada, Mexico and the United States this year.
CONCACAF said it’s tasking its council members with ensuring these plans follow “proper governance processes.” The organization said on Wednesday that it had only been made aware of the plans through media reports.
“History has shown FIFA and the football family what happens when the custodians of the game lose sight of these values,” CONCACAF said in a statement, referencing FIFA’s guiding principles of service and transparent governance. “Through these actions, Concacaf reaffirms that football’s future — and its greatest asset — must remain in the hands of our football family,”
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FIFA said it would open up the tournament to private investment on Wednesday, after Infantino reportedly ran the plans by figures within President Donald Trump’s administration. Joshua Kushner — the brother of Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner — has been considered a potential key investor in the proposal, and other figures within Trump’s orbit have been involved, sources told The Times of London, which first reported on the plans.
FIFA did not respond to multiple requests for comment.
The governing body of European soccer “unanimously and unequivocally” voted to boycott FIFA’s international competitions on Thursday, saying the World Cup “cannot be treated as an investment product.”
UEFA said none of its teams will participate in any future matches unless they have assurances that Infantino will block FIFA competitions from future private ownership. Unlike other global associations, the European governing body has incredible leverage: It comprises a majority of top-seeded teams across the most recent men’s and women’s world cups, and the contest cannot realistically proceed without European participation, especially as the 2030 men’s tournament is scheduled to take place across stadiums in Spain, Portugal and Morocco.
UEFA and CONCACAF’s firm rejections of Infantino’s plans prove difficult for him to work around, as their combined 96 members make up just under half of the total national associations represented by FIFA.
FIFA hopes to raise up to $4.2 billion in private-sector capital for a new organization that would oversee key business aspects of major soccer tournaments like the World Cup.
Infantino’s proposal would open up a new subsidiary, FIFA Forward Enterprise, in which select third-party companies could invest in competitions. FIFA, which overwhelmingly controls the global soccer network, has approached Joshua Kushner’s Thrive Capital and is partnering with J.P. Morgan.
Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee blasted reports of discussions between FIFA and Trump’s administration on Tuesday, when the news broke about Infantino’s plans to sell shares.
“Infantino is trying to bribe every member country in FIFA with a $40 million payoff to sign off on his scheme to turn the World Cup into a get-rich-quick extraction industry for oligarchs and billionaires,” the Judiciary Democrats’ account said on X. “It’s time for everyone who loves soccer to oppose this sinister Trump-Kushner takeover of the world’s most beautiful and democratic game.”
Trump and Infantino have enjoyed a close relationship, with the FIFA president making frequent visits to the White House and Mar-a-Lago. Trump presented the World Cup Trophy on July 19 in New Jersey, a few months after Infantino awarded him the newly created “FIFA Peace Prize” in December.
Infantino set a Sept. 19 deadline for the 211 federations to approve the plans. The controversial FIFA initiative would give each of them access to $40 million in funding, ESPN reported.
Other multinational soccer governing bodies are still reviewing Infantino’s plans. The Confederation of African Football is set to hold a meeting of its executive committee next week to evaluate FIFA’s proposal.
This story was updated to reflect CONCACAF’s new statement.
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