Kushner states regret over World Cup sell-off plan
Venture capitalist Joshua Kushner has said he regrets agreeing to lead investment in Fifa president Gianni Infantino's now-abandoned plan to sell stakes in the World Cup, calling it a scheme he failed to foresee the political fallout from. It marks Kushner's first public comment since the Fifa Forward Enterprise (FFE) proposal collapsed amid backlash in July, triggering a wider crisis for football's governing body and putting Infantino under pressure to resign.
Kushner's firm, Thrive Eternal, had been set to lead a $4.2bn (£3.1bn) investment for a 20% stake in a new Fifa commercial subsidiary, which Fifa said would have roughly doubled funding to national associations. While defending FFE's aims of spreading football investment more evenly across all 211 member associations, Kushner admitted "we failed to appreciate the political dynamics of global football." His comments come days after Uefa, which has led opposition to Infantino, asked a New York court to approve subpoenas against Kushner and Thrive as it weighs a potential criminal complaint in Switzerland, alleging the World Cup was undervalued and that Fifa's leadership was not properly consulted.
In short
- Kushner regrets backing Fifa's scrapped World Cup investment scheme
- Uefa seeks subpoenas against Kushner amid possible criminal complaint
- Plan would have raised $4.2bn for 20% Fifa subsidiary stake
Steelman: both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
The proposed investment could have brought substantial new funding into football and, as Fifa argued, helped distribute resources more widely among its 211 member associations. A commercial subsidiary with outside investment might also have given Fifa a way to grow revenues and support the sport without relying solely on existing income streams.
The case against
Selling a 20% stake in a major Fifa commercial operation could have transferred long-term value and influence to private investors, so the deal warranted close scrutiny. Uefa’s concerns about valuation and whether Fifa’s leadership was properly consulted raise legitimate questions about transparency and governance, even though the reported allegations remain unresolved.
Explained simply
Fifa is the world governing body for football, led by president Gianni Infantino. It oversees the World Cup and distributes money to national football associations in its 211 member countries. Uefa, which runs football in Europe, is one of Fifa’s regional bodies.
The proposed Fifa Forward Enterprise would have put some of Fifa’s commercial business into a new company, with investment led by Joshua Kushner’s firm, Thrive Eternal. In return for $4.2bn, investors would have received a 20% stake. Fifa said the plan would increase funding for national associations.
The proposal raised questions about how Fifa valued the World Cup and who had been consulted about the plan. Its collapse has added to pressure on Infantino and prompted Uefa to consider a complaint in Switzerland.
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