FIFA outlined a company valued at $20 billion to run the World Cup and other competitions, prompting UEFA to say football's governance was not an asset to sell. FIFA said FIFA Forward Enterprise would seek up to $4.2 billion from minority, non-controlling investors based on an initial valuation of $20 billion. The planned subsidiary would operate commercial aspects of competitions including the men's World Cup and Club World Cup.
FIFA is working with J.P. Morgan, and intended investors include Thrive Eternal, launched by Joshua Kushner. UEFA said the plan crossed a governance line and objected that FIFA had provided insufficient transparency about who would gain financially.
FIFA's 211 member federations would have to approve the structure and could gain access to larger one-time and recurring development payments. FIFA reported about $12 billion in income from the 2026 World Cup held in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
FIFA is organized as a Swiss-based nonprofit association owned through its national member federations rather than conventional shareholders. A minority investment can still create contractual rights, return expectations and pressure over scheduling, media, sponsorship and tournament expansion.
UEFA represents 55 European member associations and has both governance authority in Europe and commercial interests that can conflict with FIFA's global plans. As of the edition cutoff, Investor terms, governance protections, valuation methods and a final member vote were not public. The available reports distinguish measurements and attributed claims from conclusions that had not yet been established. Where officials supplied numbers, those figures remain subject to revision as agencies reconcile records and publish later updates. Subsequent records may therefore change the totals without changing the initial chronology. The next factual records to examine are formal consultation documents and national federation positions and investor disclosures and the timing of a FIFA approval vote.