Phoenix 24
A commercial dispute has exposed a deeper struggle over who controls global football.
NYON, SWITZERLAND | AUGUST 2026
UEFA is considering ending its planned boycott of FIFA competitions after receiving assurances that a controversial private-investment proposal promoted by FIFA President Gianni Infantino will not be revived. European football officials are expected to discuss the possible reversal during a meeting on Thursday. No final decision had been formally announced when the reports emerged.
In late July, UEFA declared that its 55 member associations would refuse to participate in FIFA tournaments while the FIFA Forward Enterprise project remained active. The proposal would have allowed private investors to acquire stakes in a new subsidiary responsible for managing FIFA’s commercial and event operations, including activities connected to the World Cup.
UEFA argued that the plan risked transferring influence over football’s most valuable competitions to private capital. It established two conditions for ending the boycott: FIFA had to withdraw the proposal and provide credible guarantees that a similar attempt would not be made again. FIFA later abandoned the project, but UEFA initially maintained that the required assurances were still insufficient.
A decision to lift the boycott would allow six European teams to compete in the Women’s Under-20 World Cup in Poland next month. Poland, England, France, Portugal, Spain and Italy are scheduled to participate. Their involvement had remained uncertain while the institutional dispute continued.
The possible compromise does not resolve the broader confrontation between UEFA and Infantino. Italy and Romania have withdrawn their support for his re-election as FIFA president in 2027, joining other associations demanding a leadership model based on transparency, solidarity and greater consultation. European officials argue that FIFA’s current direction is deepening divisions within international football.
Infantino retains important backing from Argentina, Mexico and six Arab football associations. US President Donald Trump has also publicly supported him, praising the commercial success of the latest World Cup and warning FIFA against replacing him. That political endorsement has further demonstrated how the governance of global football now intersects with commercial interests and international power.
Lifting the boycott would protect athletes from becoming casualties of an institutional conflict, but it would not end the debate over FIFA’s accountability. The central question remains whether the organisation’s global competitions should be managed primarily as shared sporting institutions or increasingly structured as investment assets.
Análisis que trasciende al poder. / Analysis that transcends power.