"The World Cup is not for sale": 55 UEFA members ready to boycott the 2030 World Cup

World soccer finds itself on the brink of its most serious institutional crisis in decades. All 55 national associations that make up UEFA voted unanimously to boycott World Cups and other FIFA tournaments if the international federation goes ahead with its plan to sell stakes in its competitions to private investors. According to BBC Sport, the decision was taken on Thursday at an emergency meeting convened to discuss the initiative unveiled by FIFA earlier in the week.

"The World Cup cannot be treated as an investment product," reads a UEFA statement released following the meeting. "It is one of football's greatest sporting legacies. It was built by generations — by players, national teams and fans across every continent. No part of it should ever be handed over to private investors. The World Cup is not for sale."

What Infantino is proposing

The essence of FIFA President Gianni Infantino's plan is the creation of a commercial subsidiary, Fifa Forward Enterprise (FFE), which would take over the management of the organization's main tournaments, including the World Cups. Outside investors would be invited, in FIFA's own wording, to "make minority, non-controlling investments" in the new entity. If the plan is approved, the investor group is expected to be led by Thrive — an American venture capital firm founded by Joshua Kushner, brother of Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of U.S. President Donald Trump.

Approving the initiative requires a vote by FIFA's 211 member associations. Infantino has promised each of them $40 million in writing in exchange for supporting the proposal, setting a deadline of September 19 for those who want access to an initial tranche of $20 million. In a video message circulated on Wednesday, the FIFA chief defended his plan, calling it "an offer, not an obligation."

BBC Sport's sources at FIFA say the question of appointing Infantino or anyone else as head of FFE has not been discussed. The White House said it had "nothing" to say about Infantino's plans "at this time."

"Governance through intimidation"

The emergency meeting, held virtually and chaired by UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin, was, according to its participants, marked by an extremely tense atmosphere — sources described it to the BBC as "toxic." Among those who spoke were Football Association of England chair Debbie Hewitt and its chief executive Mark Bullingham. Notably, Hewitt, who serves as one of FIFA's eight vice-presidents, had no knowledge of the negotiations Infantino was conducting over his project.

"We unanimously and unequivocally reject FIFA's proposal to hand over ownership stakes in the World Cup and other FIFA competitions to private investors," reads UEFA's statement, which stressed that the organization and its 55 associations "stand as one."

As early as Wednesday, UEFA accused FIFA of using football to "enrich itself and its friends." Thursday's statement was even harsher: it described as "irresponsible and indefensible" the fact that "a proposal of such significance for football was conceived in secret" and "without any meaningful consultation" with those responsible for developing the game.

"This is not only a profound failure of leadership, but also FIFA's abdication of its duty as guardian of world football," the document continues. "National associations around the world are being presented with an ultimatum: accept an irreversible seizure of football's greatest competitions or bear the consequences. This is not a 'democratic decision' but governance through intimidation — an act of coercion unworthy of an institution entrusted with the stewardship of the global game."

The cost of a European boycott

The announced boycott would cover all competitions under FIFA's aegis, including the men's and women's World Cups and the Club World Cup, and would take effect if FIFA's member associations vote in favor of Infantino's plan. The first test of this position at senior national team level will be the Women's World Cup playoff matches scheduled for October.

Although UEFA accounts for only a quarter of FIFA's membership, it is the European confederation that brings together most of the world's strongest national teams. Six of the eight quarterfinalists at the World Cup that ended this summer, including the new champion, Spain, represented Europe; at the 2022 and 2018 tournaments there were five and six such teams respectively. Of the 23 World Cup titles awarded to date, 13 have been won by European teams and the other 10 by South American sides.

UEFA Vice-President Laura McAllister called FIFA's proposals "a genuine existential threat to the game." At the same time, the former Wales international expressed hope that it would not come to a boycott: "I'm optimistic and I think it won't happen, because the reality is that the engine of world football is Europe."

The front against FIFA widens

UEFA's position has been publicly backed at both national and intercontinental levels. A spokeswoman for the Football Association of England said the country stands "shoulder to shoulder" with its "European colleagues" and "fully shares the collective position": "We oppose FIFA's plans — the FIFA World Cup belongs to football and always will." The Scottish Football Association said its board "unreservedly agrees with the concerns expressed by all members about the way in which these proposals were put forward and the way in which the deadline was set — without a full consultation process and without regard to the principles of good governance."

British politicians also spoke out sharply. Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy said: "This is a decision of principle that we strongly support. Football belongs to fans, not to billionaire investors. Enough. It is time to stand up for our game." British Prime Minister Andy Burnham warned on Tuesday that carrying out this idea would mean FIFA had "sold out."

Football Supporters' Europe chief executive Ronan Evain called UEFA's position "very impressive" and "a real show of strength," adding: "This is the response football needed — and the response Gianni Infantino deserved."

Other confederations also expressed wariness. CONCACAF, which governs football in North and Central America and hosted the current World Cup, said it was "deeply concerned about the lack of due process." The Asian Football Confederation expressed "disappointment" that it had not been consulted before the plans became public, while the Confederation of African Football said its president, Patrice Motsepe, will convene its executive committee next week to "study and assess" the proposals. The World Leagues Association called on FIFA to withdraw the project, and the English Premier League, a member of the association, "fully supported" that demand.

Will Infantino back down

Former Football Association of England chairman David Bernstein, speaking to BBC Sport, said he was confident that the FIFA chief has no room to maneuver: "I think this time Infantino will have to back down. This deal is unacceptable. If they want to raise capital, there are other, better ways to do it. In a normal organization, having to back down on an issue of this magnitude would probably mean the person being shown the door. But FIFA is not a normal organization. If enough national associations support him, he will stay."

At the same time, Bernstein does not believe in a final split in world football: "I can't believe that in the long term there will be a schism, because it would be a lose-lose situation for everyone. FIFA cannot afford tournaments without European national teams, and Europe, frankly, cannot afford to stay out of them either."

BBC Sport commentators compare the scale of the current confrontation with the story of the European Super League in 2021: as then, the issue is not money as such, but the very foundations of how the game is organized. The logic of private investors entering FIFA tournaments, the outlet notes, inevitably leads to their expansion — both in the number of participants and in how often they are held, which will hit the calendar and the structure of football in each individual country. Without European participants, FIFA simply will not be able to commercially generate the sums it is promising the associations.

What this means for Azerbaijan

The decision directly concerns Azerbaijani football as well: AFFA is among the 55 UEFA member associations, and the vote, according to BBC Sport, was unanimous. At the same time, as of publication there is no information about the meeting or the decision taken on AFFA's official website — no official statements have come from Baku.

What gives events particular significance for Azerbaijan is that the country, together with Uzbekistan, is due to host the final stage of the 2027 FIFA U-20 World Cup — a decision taken by the FIFA executive committee in October 2025. The announced boycott extends to all competitions under FIFA's aegis, which means that, should the conflict escalate, the participation of European national teams in the tournament, matches of which will be held in Azerbaijan among other places, could be called into question. Further developments will depend on whether Infantino's plan gathers the necessary support by the deadline set by FIFA — September 19.