UEFA welcomes FIFA’s crucial decision to scrap stake sale proposal

The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) has welcomed FIFA’s decision to scrap plans to sell a stake in the World Cup and said it intends to work with partners and key stakeholders to ensure that such moves cannot be fast-tracked without future consultation.

The governing body said in a statement: “UEFA welcomes FIFA’s decision to withdraw its plan to sell a stake in its competitions including the World Cup into private hands.”

“In the coming days and weeks, UEFA will work with its associations and in close cooperation with other confederations to reflect on how this happened and devise a plan to make sure that it cannot occur again, the statement continues.”

UEFA appreciated that all the fans, leagues, clubs, players, individuals, associations and confederations confronted the scheme alongside the many Prime Ministers, Head of State, and commentators who have demonstrated to the FIFA President that football is not for sale.

The council will work with its associations and in close cooperation with other confederations to shed light on how this happened and proposed a plan to ensure that it cannot occur again. The current FIFA leadership has not only UEFA’s confidence but also that of other members of the football family.

When Gianni Infantino asked for the trust and votes of FIFA’s Member Associations he said, “Of course we have to be transparent, I have been this in the last 15 years of my life in UEFA, You will have to play a part every day in the life of FIFA.”

Nonetheless, UEFA will begin working with partners and stakeholders all over the world and across the game to introduce a fresh approach to distributing resources through the existing FIFA Forward program. This is just a complete win for the whole game, but it must not be the end of the story, as the task of rebuilding trust in FIFA has just begun.