"Had we known what this would devolve into, we would not have gotten involved." That's Josh Kushner — founder of VC firm Thrive Capital and brother of Jared Kushner — on the collapsed FIFA Forward Enterprise deal, and it tells you everything about how badly this went sideways.
The plan, known as FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE), would have created a commercial subsidiary holding FIFA's broadcasting, licensing, and ticket sale rights. Thrive was set to lead a group of investors — including BANN Ventures CEO Greg Maffei — putting in up to $4.2 billion for roughly 20% of the business, valuing the whole thing at around $20 billion. Each member association was set to receive $20 million in immediate development funding. FIFA would have kept control. Investors would have held minority, non-controlling stakes.
On paper, it looked like a mechanism for redistributing football's wealth downward. In practice, it exploded.
UEFA is now preparing a criminal complaint
UEFA is reportedly readying a criminal complaint in Switzerland, alleging that FIFA president Gianni Infantino and other officials developed the FFE plan in secret — without notifying the FIFA Council, regional confederations, or member associations. CONCACAF and the Asian Football Confederation also publicly rejected the proposal once the press exposed it. Even Sepp Blatter, hardly anyone's idea of a moral compass, came out swinging against it.
The core objection: handing outside investors a long-term stake in FIFA's most lucrative commercial assets — assets tied to the biggest sporting event on the planet — and expecting them to stay hands-off while they wait for a return. FIFA is a nonprofit. Private equity is not.
Infantino scrapped the FFE in late July and has since apologized for how it was handled, while still defending the underlying idea. He faces reelection in March 2027, and several European member associations have already pulled their support. He still holds backing from African and South American confederations — 64 associations combined — so this isn't over for him yet, but the pressure is real.
What happens next in court
UEFA has approached U.S. federal courts in Florida and the Southern District of New York, seeking documents and testimony for its potential Swiss criminal case. FIFA is fighting back, calling it a "smear campaign" and arguing UEFA is trying to protect its own outsized influence over global football by blocking poorer federations from gaining financial strength.
A Florida federal court has already allowed FIFA to intervene and oppose UEFA's discovery request. New York proceedings are on hold while the Florida case plays out.
Thrive, for what it's worth, has brought in high-profile attorney Alex Spiro — known for representing Elon Musk and Jay-Z — though UEFA has said Kushner and Thrive are not suspected of wrongdoing. Kushner's position is that every member association would have voted on the final proposal anyway.
"It was an idea that every Member Association would vote on, not an obligation or determination," he said.
That's a fair point — but it also sidesteps why the plan generated such fury: not just the idea itself, but how it was conceived in the shadows and nearly pushed through before anyone outside a small circle even knew it existed.
