3 min readAug 12, 2026 06:35 AM IST First published on: Aug 12, 2026 at 06:35 AM ISTLess than a month after the final of the most profitable World Cup in history, generating around $15 billion in total revenue, the world of football has descended into open war. In the latest development, three of FIFA’s six continental governing bodies — UEFA, AFC and CONCACAF — have written to FIFA president Gianni Infantino accusing him of placing “himself above the collective that entrusted him with authority” and calling for an independent review of the now-abandoned proposal to sell a stake in the World Cup to private investors. It is also a polite way of telling him to step down. This is hardly Infantino’s first brush with controversy. The FIFA Peace Prize for Donald Trump, who has already waded in to defend him, the Balogun affair, and now the FIFA Forward Enterprise are the latest episodes in a presidency marked by questions over transparency, political motives and the concentration of power at FIFA.This is not the first time Infantino has sought to push the boundaries of commercial football. In 2018, a deal with Japanese firm SoftBank for an expanded Club World Cup and a global Nations League fell apart amid immediate backlash. The problem is this: The World Cup is not Infantino’s to sell. FIFA, which operates legally as a non-profit association, is both a governing federation and an enormous financial enterprise, but the value it seeks to monetise is off something that was not created by FIFA. Football, as it is today, is the product of decades of investment, competition, and the participation of players and fans. The question is whether FIFA should give private investors (including Trump’s son-in-law’s brother Joshua Kushner) a claim on the commercial future of something as colossal as the World Cup without the consent or scrutiny of the 211 member associations that constitute it. Indeed, it is Infantino’s increasingly unilateral style of decision-making that threatens to fracture the footballing world.AdvertisementThe revolt comes at a critical moment for Infantino, with the next FIFA presidential election scheduled for 2027. Instead of revelling in the success of the biggest World Cup ever — albeit one marred by political controversy — he finds himself fighting for survival. The larger principle should be clear to all: One of the richest governing bodies overseeing the world’s most popular sport must be administered with transparency and accountability.