The Football Federation of Sri Lanka (FFSL) has offered its support to FIFA President Gianni Infantino, even as European nations are deliberating moves to remove him.
In a letter issued on Saturday, FFSL President Jaswar Umar welcomed FIFA’s decision to withdraw the controversial FIFA Forward Enterprise Initiative – a move to that would essentially sell a stake of the FIFA World Cup to a private investors – which several national football associations opposed.
Despite the withdraw, Infantino’s leadership of FIFA has been publicly questioned by football’s governing bodies in Europe, North and Central America and the Caribbean.
Context
Two weeks after the conclusion of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, Infantino announced a proposal to create FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE) – a new subsidiary that would handle the World Cup’s commercial rights.
Controversially, Infantino’s proposal included a plan to sell a 20% stake in FFE to private investors, which include the Josh Kushnar, the brother of US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushnar.
Major football governing bodies, led by UEFA, which governs football in Europe, fiercely condemned the move and threatened a full boycott of FIFA competitions.
FFE Plans
The plan proposed creating FFE as a commercial subsidiary valued at $20 billion to manage FIFA’s broadcast, sponsorship, ticketing, and operational rights for major tournaments like the Men's and Women's World Cups.
FIFA intended to retain an 80% controlling stake while selling the remaining 20% to a private investor group led by Joshua Kushner’s fund (Thrive Eternal) for $4.2 billion.
The raised capital was structured to offer member associations a $20 million one-off sign-up payout alongside increased annual development grants through 2030 to secure their support.
Criticism
Football governing bodies opposed to the move accused Infantino of attempting to sell off football’s prized asset to private equity, prioritizing short-term financial profit over the sport's traditions and long-term governance.
They also alleged that the deal lacked transparency, particularly with the involvement of President Trump’s son-in-law, and would potentially be a conflict of interest since Infantino would serve as the chair of the new enterprise.
They also condemned Infantino for bypassing standard consultation processes and using $20 million cash incentives to pressure financially reliant member nations into rushing through approval.
Infantino’s response
Announcing the withdrawal, Infantino defended the proposal’s original intent, stating FIFA’s purpose remains to unite and improve global football through increased funding.
However, after listening to stakeholder feedback, he acknowledged that the initiative created unintended divisions.
Moving forward, Infantino pledged to unite continental governing bodies and member associations through collaborative dialogue, refocusing efforts on growing the game in developing nations.
Infantino’s ouster
UEFA publicly declared that Infantino had lost the trust of the European football family, stating that "no option should be off the table".
It was reported that UEFA was preparing to table a motion of no confidence against Infantino, with CONCACAF (North/Central America) also coordinating with member associations across Asia and Africa to form a broad coalition aimed at mounting an official leadership challenge.
Senior FIFA executives and internal staff openly turned against Infantino, with key officials resigning and publicly calling for political leaders to hold him accountable and force his departure.
FFSL’s position
Along with his support for Infantino, Umar also said he was confident that FIFA would strengthen meaningful consultation and engagement with its Member Associations and decision-making bodies in future.
This would, he added, ensure that “future initiatives are developed through collaborative discussion and in the best interests of football worldwide.”
Umar has previously referred to Infantino as a “close friend”, inviting the FIFA President to Sri Lanka in 2021, and sealing financial funding from FIFA for an international football stadium in Colombo.
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