UEFA votes to boycott FIFA-sanctioned tournaments

European soccer's governing body UEFA held a vote on Thursday and decided to boycott future men's and women's World Cups in response to FIFA's plans to sell stakes in the tournaments to private investors.

Following an emergency meeting attended by 55 national associations, UEFA stated that the World Cup should not be viewed as an investment product. The organization emphasized that European national teams will not take part in FIFA tournaments as long as the plan in question remains in force.

UEFA demanded that FIFA completely abandon the initiative and provide legally binding guarantees that the governance of the largest soccer competitions will not be handed over to private entities.

There have already been instances of boycotts in the history of the World Cup: England skipped the first three tournaments, African countries refused to take part in qualifying for the 1966 World Cup, and the USSR did not play its match against Chile after the military coup in that country.