FIFA’s chief of global football development Arsene Wenger says scrapping the plan to have private investment in FIFA competitions was “absolutely necessary and beyond question”.
FIFA president Gianni Infantino planned to create a commercial subsidiary to run its main events, including its World Cups, with external investors able to buy stakes.
Infantino had offered FIFA’s 211 member associations $40m (£30m) each if they backed the proposal.
But after days of criticism – including UEFA’s 55 nations threatening to boycott all FIFA tournaments – Infantino was forced to withdraw the plan.
Wenger has been in a role which encompasses data analysis of the game, FIFA’s online training and youth competitions since 2019.
The former Arsenal boss previously supported Infantino’s proposal to play the men’s World Cup every two years. A week after Infantino’s investment plan was first released, the Frenchman issued a statement through FIFA in which he demanded “transparency and integrity” from world football’s governing body.
“The recent events at FIFA deserve some clarity from my side,” Wenger’s statement read. “I was not involved in this strategic plan and first became aware of the project through media reports.
“The decision to withdraw the project was absolutely necessary and beyond question, because I firmly believe in an independent FIFA that serves our game with commitment, transparency, and integrity.”
Wenger is one of 18 Fifa officials named in a document preservation letter UEFA sent to FIFA threatening legal action.
Also Read: FIFA abandons controversial World Cup Investment Plan
Carlos Cordeiro – Infantino’s senior adviser on global strategy and governance – is the only FIFA official to resign over the scandal, saying the proposal was “a bad deal for football” and would “mortgage football’s future”.
FIFA secretary general Mattias Grafstrom joined the criticism of the plan, writing in an internal memo to staff that the last week had been “difficult to comprehend and accept”.
Grafstrom is seen as a close ally of Infantino, becoming FIFA’s chief of staff after the Swiss was elected president in 2016. The Swede was evelated to secretary general, one of the most powerful positions in FIFA, in 2024.
“A sad and reproachable series of events – which were thankfully concluded with the project permanently abandoned – for as much as we feel dismayed by them, should not overshadow this reality,” Grafstrom wrote.
“We have all been thrown into the middle of a turmoil, which is difficult to comprehend and accept.
“I urge you to remain focused on what has always united us: serving football and serving our 211 member associations, hand in hand with all relevant stakeholders and in full compliance with the FIFA statutes and FIFA regulations.
“I assure you that you as members of the administration, you will be defended and safeguarded from the political context we currently experience. You do not need to worry.
“Individuals, unstable moments and unfortunate episodes come and go. The institution, its mission and its responsibility towards world football continue, and that is why we should always keep our professionalism, sense of perspective and composure.”
BBC
