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New Delhi: FIFA on Tuesday proposed a plan to sell stakes in the World Cup and its other major tournaments, sparking an angry reaction from UEFA, the governing body of European football. FIFA’s proposal to sell stakes to private investors in its major tournaments has left the football world divided.

On Tuesday, FIFA announced the proposal to create a new commercial subsidiary to run its major tournaments, including the World Cup. The world football governing body confirmed that external investors can buy a minority stake in it and help in running the tournaments globally.

FIFA confirmed it will invite “third parties to make minority, non-controlling investments” in its new subsidiary known as the FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE). However, the proposal needs to be approved and passed by a vote of the 211 member nations who are part of the world football governing body.

If passed successfully, the proposed investor group for FFE will be led by an American firm, Thrive Eternal. Interestingly, Thrive is a firm founded by Joshua Kushner, the brother of US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner. FIFA plans to raise up to $4.2 billion via the FFE, which it said will be reinvested in the game.

FIFA said the motive behind seeking private investments is to expand “football development funding” across the globe. As part of its proposal, FIFA outlined that all member nations will be allowed to access up to $20 million in “one-off capital” to fund development of the sport in the country.

FIFA, which recently organised the 2026 World Cup in the US, Canada and Mexico, is one of the world’s richest sporting organisations, earning billions of dollars annually through broadcasting rights, sponsorship fees and other commercial deals. But the world body says the new proposal will help in increasing funds to strengthen global participation.

“Football is the world’s most popular sport. Parts of the game have turned that popularity into remarkable commercial value – and we celebrate that success and want it to continue, because it lifts the whole game,” FIFA president Gianni Infantino said in a statement.

“Our job is to make sure the rest of football grows with it: FIFA exists to support sustainable, inclusive development in every corner of the world,” he added.

FIFA also clarified in its statement that it will continue to retain the sole control of its subsidiary, FFE even though it is inviting third-party investment. The world football body also insisted that it will retain authority over football competitions, football governance, match calendars and other regulatory and sporting decisions related to world football.

UEFA has slammed FIFA’s new proposal to commercialise and sell stakes in major tournaments, stating that the world body has “crossed a line” by trying to privatise the sport. Criticising the proposal, UEFA said it takes it “extremely seriously”. The European football body stated that FIFA’s proposal tries to “trade” soul and governance of football.

“This crosses a line that football’s governing institutions should never cross,” Uefa said in a statement.

“Uefa takes it extremely seriously. So should every National Football Association. So should every stakeholder who cares about the future of the game.

“The soul and governance of football are not assets to trade – especially with zero transparency as to who gains financially. None of us are the owners of football. It is not FIFA’s to sell,” it added.

UK’s Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, also opposed FIFA’s proposal and criticised it, stating that the game doesn’t belong to investors. He said the World Cup is not a product, but the greatest competition in sport, and it is not anyone’s property to sell.

“The World Cup is not a product. It is the greatest competition in world sport, and it was never anyone’s to sell. Dress the deal up however you like. Once you have sold a piece of it, you have sold out,” Burnham wrote on X.