FIFA Faces Backlash Over Plan to Give Kushner-Linked Fund a Stake
FIFA, world football’s governing body, is facing a wave of international backlash after unveiling plans to sell a significant stake in a new commercial entity overseeing the World Cup to an investor group led by Joshua Kushner, the brother of Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump’s son-in-law.
Under the proposal, announced on Tuesday, FIFA would move its commercial rights, ticketing, sponsorship, and broadcasting operations into a newly created subsidiary called FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE), valued at roughly $20 billion. The plan would open the door for outside investors to acquire up to a 20 percent stake in the venture, with the goal of raising approximately $4.2 billion. FIFA has said it intends to use the proceeds to triple the amount of development funding distributed to its member associations, while retaining majority control of the new entity.
Thrive Eternal, a permanent-capital investment vehicle launched by Joshua Kushner’s Thrive Capital, is expected to lead the group of investors backing the venture, with J.P. Morgan reportedly brought in to help structure and pitch the deal. According to Bloomberg reporting, discussions between FIFA President Gianni Infantino and Kushner over the concept reportedly began last year, with the plan formally unveiled to member associations in Manhattan in mid-July.
The proposal has triggered swift condemnation across the football world. UEFA, European soccer’s governing body, has accused FIFA of overstepping its authority, arguing the World Cup does not belong to FIFA to sell, and has threatened a boycott alongside other major European national teams. CONCACAF, the governing body for North and Central American football, has also pushed back against the plan.
The controversy has taken on a political dimension in the United States, given Joshua Kushner’s family ties to the Trump administration. Democratic members of the House Judiciary Committee criticized the arrangement, and Representative Jamie Raskin of Maryland has opened an inquiry into Infantino’s relationship with the Trump White House. Separately, a group of European lawmakers has called on FIFA’s Ethics Committee to examine whether Infantino’s conduct breaches the organization’s political neutrality standards.
FIFA has pushed back against suggestions that the plan represents a conflict of interest, stating that outside investors would hold only a minority, non-voting stake in FFE with no operational role or seat on FIFA’s governing council, and that the arrangement does not change FIFA itself. A source close to Thrive Capital also disputed any suggestion that Trump himself was involved in structuring the deal, and noted that Kushner’s political donations have not been tied to the current administration.
The plan now requires approval from a majority of FIFA’s 211 member associations as well as its 37-member council, with member nations expected to make a decision by mid-September. The outcome could shape not only the future financing of the World Cup, but also broader questions about FIFA’s independence from political influence heading into future tournament cycles.
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