UEFA, CONCACAF urge FIFA to release $10m to member associations

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UEFA and CONCACAF have urged FIFA to release at least $10 million to each of its 211 member associations from its accumulated reserves for the 2027-30 cycle.

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As reported by BBC Sport on Friday, in a letter to FIFA president Gianni Infantino, UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin and Concacaf president Victor Montagliani said FIFA was in a strong enough financial position to make the one-off distribution.

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The proposed payment would cost FIFA about $2.11 billion and would be in addition to the organisation’s regular funding for the 2027-30 cycle.

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The letter said FIFA was “on course to close 2023-26 with reserves of approximately $6bn,” adding that this was “considerably more than is required” through to the 2030 World Cup.

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Ceferin and Montagliani said their analysis of FIFA’s published financial statements and budgets raised doubts about whether the controversial FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE) proposal was necessary to provide greater resources to football associations.

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The FFE plan would have created a new company to manage the commercial and ticketing rights of FIFA competitions, including the World Cup, with 21% of the company proposed to be sold to an investment company.

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The proposal was withdrawn four days after it was announced following widespread opposition from national associations.

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“FIFA should make at least $10m available to each of its 211 member associations over the 2027-30 cycle,” the letter said, adding that the money should be used for “investment in infrastructure and football development.”

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The two confederation presidents also called for an independent review of FIFA’s finances, saying it should have “full access to the underlying figures and assumptions.”

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“FIFA currently holds billions of dollars in accumulated reserves,” they wrote. “These resources belong to football and exist to serve the game and its 211 member associations.”

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They added: “Prudence should not prevent a careful examination of whether a portion could responsibly be released to the extent those reserves exceed FIFA’s foreseeable needs.”

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The letter also argued that development funding should be an institutional responsibility rather than a matter of individual discretion.

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“Development is an institutional responsibility of FIFA, not a matter of individual discretion,” Ceferin and Montagliani said.

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The latest intervention comes amid a wider dispute over the FFE proposal and FIFA’s financial governance.

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Another letter has been sent to the presidents of the other four confederations, the Asian Football Confederation, Confederation of African Football, South American Football Confederation and Oceania Football Confederation, asking them to support the proposed distribution.

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The development follows a separate letter from Football Association chair Debbie Hewitt to Infantino and FIFA secretary general Mattias Grafstrom demanding the release of documents relating to the FFE plan.

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Hewitt, who is also a FIFA vice-president, also called for the FIFA Council to receive a written explanation concerning the cancellation of the suspension of United States forward Folarin Balogun at the World Cup.

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FIFA’s next Council meeting is scheduled for October 15.

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Infantino is seeking a fourth term as FIFA president at the election in March, with potential opponents having until November 18 to nominate an alternative candidate.

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