When Sepp Blatter — the man whose reign ended in a corruption scandal that shook world football — thinks you've gone too far, you've gone too far.
On Tuesday, FIFA announced it was exploring the sale of a minority stake in the organisation, pegging its own valuation at $20 billion. The vehicle for this would be a newly created subsidiary called FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE), which would control broadcast rights, sponsorship, ticketing, licensing and the operational running of FIFA tournaments. In short: almost everything that generates revenue.
The investor group expected to lead the FFE is Thrive Eternal, a holding company founded by Joshua Kushner — brother of Jared Kushner, Donald Trump's son-in-law. That detail is not incidental. It's the whole story.
The Trump connection nobody can ignore
Infantino's ties to the current U.S. administration have been building for months. FIFA rented office space at Trump Tower. Infantino awarded Trump a peace prize that appeared to exist solely for that purpose. Trump showed up at Spain's World Cup trophy presentation and had to be nudged off the stage. And when Trump publicly called for a review of U.S. striker Folarin Balogun's red card suspension, FIFA — astonishingly — overturned it.
Each of those on its own might be dismissed. All of them together, culminating in a nine-figure financial partnership with Trump's extended family, is a pattern. Blatter, whatever his own sins, recognised it immediately.
What makes this different from the backroom dealings that defined football governance for decades is that Infantino isn't hiding it. The press release names Thrive Eternal. The valuations are public. The conflict of interest is sitting right there in the announcement, and FIFA is betting nobody with real power will do anything about it.
UEFA pushed back — but how hard?
UEFA was quick to voice opposition on Tuesday, which is noteworthy but not yet meaningful. European confederations have grumbled about Infantino before and achieved little. The real test comes in March, when Infantino is set to stand for what would be his final four-year term as FIFA president.
If he wins — and there's little concrete sign he won't — he would serve until 2031. Reports suggest he views leading the FFE as his post-presidency role, essentially positioning himself to run the commercial arm of world football after leaving the top job. A soft landing funded by the organisation he's spent years reshaping around himself.
- FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE) would hold broadcast rights, sponsorship, ticketing and licensing
- Thrive Eternal, the expected lead investor, was founded by Joshua Kushner
- FIFA's self-estimated valuation stands at $20 billion
- Infantino is reportedly eyeing a leadership role at FFE after his FIFA presidency ends in 2031
For anyone pricing governance risk into football's commercial future — broadcasters, sponsors, betting markets tied to tournament structures — the uncertainty around who actually controls FIFA's product rights is now a live question, not a theoretical one.
UEFA's opposition is on record. Blatter has spoken. The March election will tell us whether any of it matters.
