Infantino's World Cup Privatization Plan Ditched Amid Backlash and Whistleblower Claims

FIFA President Gianni Infantino's plan to privatize the World Cup has been scrapped after massive backlash from member confederations. The 'FIFA Forward Enterprise' project would have led to a huge payday for Infantino, who was allegedly eyeing a $30 million salary plus bonuses to lead the new commercial entity.

Infantino publicly claimed that he would not personally enrich himself from the project, but whistleblowers have made the exact opposite assertion. Despite being a non-profit, FIFA pays its President a 4.8 million Swiss franc salary, which is already a rich figure.

The plan would have given each FIFA member association upwards of $20 million as a one-time developmental investment, but most confederations opposed this plan as a united front and got Infantino to scrap it. The deal was blasted by UEFA as a 'shabby, back-room deal' and an attempt to 'sell football', with the organization pushing for a leadership change at FIFA.