4.9.2026
FIFA has accused its partner UEFA of smear campaign as the European football body search for evidence to secure a criminal indictment of FIFA president Gianni Infantino in a Swiss court.
According to FIFA, UEFA has embarked on “smear campaign” and “fishing expedition” following a dispute between the two organisations in the wake of FIFA’s plan to sell a stake in its commercial rights.
UEFA has submitted an ex parte application to the US District Court in New York to obtain testimony and documents from US-based entities. These documents will be used in potential criminal proceedings in Switzerland, where both FIFA and UEFA are based.
“While these applications are styled as legal pleadings with captions and docket numbers, they are little more than press releases in further support of UEFA’s smear campaign against FIFA and its leadership,” FIFA said in a filing in US District Court in Colorado on Thursday.
FIFA’s filing in Colorado was a motion to intervene, requesting that the discovery process be postponed or dismissed.
According to UEFA, the FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE), an entity which would have had the commercial rights linked over the FIFA World Cup to investors was developed without adequate consulting FIFA’s 211 member associations, as well as FIFA’s own governing bodies
FIFA argued that the association representing European football had tried to scupper the proposal with a bid to keep European football’s dominance.
Demands for Infatino’s resignation
Pressure has been mounting on both FIFA and its President Gianni Infantino since the FFE plans were made public.
This resulted in several countries saying they will not support Infantino’s reelection for a fourth term as president in March 2027, when the Swiss-born FIFA boss looks for a fourth term in office.
Aside from UEFA, two other continental confederations demand Infantino’s resignation.
Both CONCACAF, representing North and Central America and the Caribbean, and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) voiced their objections to Infantino. Only the South American and African confederations still support him.
UEFA also demanded a “genuinely independent external review” of how the proposal came about.
“FIFA cannot investigate itself and expect the football community to simply accept its conclusions,” UEFA said with DW reports.