“Together with other existing FIFA programmes, these investments could bring FIFA’s total planned development funding to more than $10 billion over the next four years,” FIFA said.
British Prime Minister Andy Burnham, an Everton fan, decried the plan, saying football was not a product in a post on X.
“Football does not belong to investors. It belongs to the people who fill the stands and who stand on the touchline week in, week out, rain or shine. 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. Football belongs to the fans. It always has, and it always will,” he wrote.
World Cup expansion
In June, ahead of the World Cup, FIFA, which folds competition income into revenue for the whole year, anticipated record revenues exceeding $8 billion for 2026.
It was the first World Cup with 48 teams. At the start, Infantino said “we have had discussions about expanding to 64 teams” for 2030.
The Times quoted an unnamed “senior football figure” calling the plan “potentially much worse than the European Super League”, as it would have an impact on all levels of football across the globe.
Another anonymous source told the British paper that the plan would create “unacceptable” conflicts of interest for FIFA and Infantino.
In 2019, a FIFA stakeholders’ committee rejected an Infantino-backed plan for a $25 billion private investment in an expanded Club World Cup. Reported backers included SoftBank of Japan and Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund. FIFA did expand that competition from seven teams to 32 clubs in 2025.
The Times speculated that the creation of FFE could have an impact on the World Cup and the Club World Cup.
“It could lead to pressure for both events to be further expanded or played more regularly than the present once every four years,” it wrote.
FIFA, which as a not-for-profit organisation effectively owned by the MAs, enjoys tax-free status in Switzerland.
