Infantino offers apology but ‘no answers’ at FIFA meeting over World Cup plan

FIFA president Gianni Infantino faced intense questioning during a meeting to discuss his plans to sell stakes in the World Cup to private investors, but he did not provide satisfactory answers, according to senior members of football's global governing body. Bernd Neuendorf, the head of the German Football Association and a member of the FIFA Council, stated that while they asked many critical questions, Infantino's responses were not satisfactory.

Infantino offered an apology for the failed project, but reiterated that it was a proposal, not a finalized decision. The proposal aimed to enable FIFA to invest more in member associations, but was abandoned due to widespread criticism from UEFA, the Asian Football Confederation, and CONCACAF. Infantino, who has been under pressure since announcing the plan, confirmed that the FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE) initiative is permanently withdrawn.

However, Infantino reaffirmed that the FFE initiative will not reappear in any form. Many leading European national associations have withdrawn their support for Infantino due to the uproar caused by FFE and other controversies, including his decision to create a FIFA Peace Prize and award it to US president Donald Trump.