FIFA’s commercial company: three levels of criticism in L’Équipe (July 30)

Interviewed by L’Équipe on 29 July 2026, I examine FIFA’s plan for a commercial company and the opening of the World Cup to private investors. Three levels of criticism stand out: the process, the moral legitimacy, and the economic rationale.

The process first. An operation of this kind would normally require a competitive tender — not only for reasons of ethics and integrity, but out of pure economic interest, since the best bid is supposed to produce the best offer. Yet the circuit already includes presumed players — foremost among them Thrive Eternal, founded by Joshua Kushner, brother of Jared and thus part of Donald Trump’s family circle — who either select the funds or are themselves investors. On this point, the conclusion is unambiguous: “it is completely abnormal”.

Then the moral legitimacy. The plan would allow member federations to resell their own stake as well. In my view, this amounts to “entirely unbridled financialisation”. What does it have to do with the core mission of a sports federation?

And finally the economic rationale. Legally, nothing prevents FIFA from using a commercial company. The fact remains that the two reasons that usually justify such a structure — a borrowing cost that has become prohibitive, or getting through a temporary difficulty — are both absent here. In recent years FIFA has demonstrated its ability to grow its revenue on its own, with 15 billion dollars (€13.1 billion) over the 2023-2026 four-year cycle, above initial forecasts. “Why would it saddle itself with 20% of its revenue for the entire duration of an event that is lastingly attractive and works well?”

The valuation test is telling. Four billion dollars for 20% implies a structure valued at 20 billion dollars (€17.5 billion). By comparison, the LFP took in €1.5 billion by selling 13% of its commercial company to CVC in perpetuity, on a valuation of €11.5 billion at the time. Is the World Cup really worth only 1.5 times Ligue 1? There is room for doubt. And the suspicion then shifts: that of letting a few players pull off a huge financial windfall when they resell their stakes.

And then what? The precedent of the biennial World Cup is not trivial: the idea had been championed by Gianni Infantino before he backed down in the face of very strong opposition. Investors drawn by a more profitable event could well put it back on the table. The same withdrawal scenario cannot be ruled out here.

→ Read the full interview on L’Équipe (interview by Alban Traquet): https://www.lequipe.fr/Football/Article/Projet-de-societe-commerciale-de-la-fifa-l-ex-conseiller-sport-d-emmanuel-macron-denonce-une-financiarisation-totalement-debridee/1707853