FIFA Chief Gianni Infantino on the Ropes as He Ditches Controversial $20 Billion Private Investment Plan

Gianni Infantino, the embattled president of soccer’s governing body FIFA, has abandoned his controversial plan to create a $20 billion company that would control the commercial rights to its events, principally the World Cup.

In a statement released late Friday, Infantino said it had “become clear that the project has created divisions of a nature that, regardless of the level of support, are no longer in the interest of the objective set out in the first place.”

Related Stories

Box Office: 'The Odyssey' Has Epic Opening Day With $51 Million

'Spider-Man: Brand New Day' Early Cut 'Took Notes From Random People' at Test Screenings and 'We Hated It,' Says Tom Holland: 'It Totally Didn't Work'

The survival of Infantino, who is up for re-election for a fourth term as president at the FIFA Congress in March, is now in doubt.

Infantino said, “Our purpose has always been – and will always be – to unite and improve. Moving forward, my intent is to bring all interested parties back together in the coming days and weeks in the spirit of shared interest in our game.”

The climbdown by Infantino follows a threat by European countries, represented by the continent’s soccer governing body UEFA, to boycott all FIFA events, including the World Cup, if the plan moved forward.

Opposition to Infantino’s plan had also come from Concacaf, which governs soccer in North, Central America and the Caribbean, and the sport’s governing body in Asia, the Asian Football Confederation.

More to follow.