'The emperor is naked': UEFA's Ceferin takes aim at FIFA boss Infantino

UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin launched a scathing critique of FIFA President Gianni Infantino on Tuesday, likening FIFA's efforts to sell a stake in football's commercial rights to the story of "The Emperor's New Clothes." Ceferin, addressing the European Football Clubs General Assembly in Copenhagen, pointed out that FIFA's defense of the shelved FIFA Forward Enterprise project was filled with misleading language.

The proposal aimed to create a FIFA-controlled commercial subsidiary, allowing private investors to acquire up to 20% of the entity. Infantino had touted the plan as a way to generate more funds for football development, but Ceferin argued that the proposal was abandoned due to widespread opposition. He challenged FIFA's use of terms like "development," "democratization," and "consultation," asserting that these concepts were being misused to justify actions that were anything but.

Ceferin went as far as to ask club executives to imagine a scenario where a senior official secretly negotiated away control of their "crown jewels" without the knowledge of their board, players, or supporters. He warned that this type of behavior would not be tolerated if it happened repeatedly. Ceferin concluded by accusing unnamed decision-makers of bending rules and treating football's future as just another bargaining chip.