FIFA has agreed to allow members of its Council to inspect documents relating to President Gianni Infantino’s abandoned plan to sell stakes in the World Cup to private investors, following pressure from the Union of European Football Associations.
However, the world football governing body has restricted access to its headquarters in Zurich, Switzerland, with members required to comply with strict confidentiality rules.
The decision came hours before UEFA’s November 2 deadline for FIFA to explain the controversial FIFA Forward Enterprise proposal and respond to more than 100 questions about its governance and decision-making process.
FIFA Secretary-General, Mattias Grafstrom, communicated the decision in a letter to members of the organisation’s Council, according to a BBC Sport report.
Under the arrangement, Council members interested in examining the documents must register within two weeks.
Grafstrom said access would be subject to “strict review protocols to preserve confidentiality”.
However, FIFA has yet to specify the documents that would be made available or whether the arrangement would adequately address UEFA’s concerns.
The dispute followed a FIFA Council meeting last month, where Infantino apologised for the abandoned investment proposal but failed to provide a detailed explanation of how it was developed.
Instead, he asked Council members to submit their questions in writing.
UEFA subsequently accused FIFA of avoiding fundamental questions, arguing that withdrawing the proposal and admitting mistakes were not enough without accountability for the decisions behind it.
In an eight-page letter to FIFA, the European football governing body raised concerns about the proposal, funding arrangements for national associations and other governance issues.
It also questioned FIFA’s decision to award its inaugural Peace Prize to United States President Donald Trump and the controversial suspended ban imposed on United States striker Folarin Balogun at the World Cup.
UEFA said, “The withdrawal of FFE, the acknowledgement of mistakes and the announcement of ‘potential governance reforms’ do not answer how the relevant decisions were taken or why the FIFA Council was not involved at the appropriate stage.”
The European body insisted that FIFA must provide answers immediately rather than defer the matter until its next Council meeting.
“These questions require answers now. They cannot be deferred until the next meeting of the FIFA Council – nor can future governance reforms substitute for scrutiny of decisions already taken and accountability for them,” it added.
Responding, Grafstrom argued that UEFA had submitted considerably more questions than FIFA’s administration could reasonably have anticipated.
He said FIFA was working on a comprehensive response that would be circulated to all Council members.
Grafstrom also maintained that the investment proposal could not have proceeded without the cumulative and mandatory approval of the FIFA Council and a majority of its member associations.
He further said FIFA would not have incurred any financial penalty for withdrawing from the proposal, as it eventually did.
Meanwhile, sources told BBC Sport that FIFA considered UEFA’s two-week deadline unrealistic, citing its commitments to organising a new youth World Cup in Azerbaijan and preparations for an extraordinary congress later this month.
The controversy has also been complicated by legal action initiated by UEFA in the United States in October, seeking access to evidence and documents relating to the proposal.
UEFA has also warned that it could file a criminal complaint in Switzerland.
The disagreement comes at a sensitive period for Infantino, with November 18 marking the deadline for prospective challengers to declare their intention to contest next year’s FIFA presidential election.
Although UEFA has yet to disclose its next move should FIFA’s response prove unsatisfactory, the dispute has intensified scrutiny of Infantino’s leadership and the governing body’s decision-making process.
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