标签： Europe

GENEVA — In a move that has plunged international soccer into turmoil, FIFA President Gianni Infantino has given the governing body’s 211 national member federations until September 19 to approve a groundbreaking and divisive proposal: selling a 20% stake in a newly created $20 billion FIFA subsidiary that would control the World Cup, Club World Cup and all of FIFA’s top competitions. The one-time $20 million payout promised to every approving federation is underwritten by Thrive Capital, the investment firm founded by Joshua Kushner — brother of Jared Kushner, former U.S. President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, who is listed as the anchor backer for the deal.

In the confidential letter obtained by The Associated Press, Infantino framed the proposal as a once-in-a-generation, game-changing opportunity for FIFA’s global membership. “It is my duty and responsibility as FIFA president to present such game-changing opportunities to you, our members,” he wrote, adding that the initiative would unlock unprecedented capital to grow soccer across all member nations. If approved, the subsidiary, called FIFA Forward Enterprise, would bring on a pool of additional international investors, with global banking giant J.P. Morgan tapped to lead the fundraising process. The $20 million payout to each member would be disbursed over the four-year commercial cycle leading up to the 2030 men’s World Cup; if the plan fails, members will only receive the originally promised $10 million in funding over the same period.

The proposal, which became public earlier this week, has triggered immediate and widespread pushback from every major regional governing body in global soccer. Europe’s UEFA, which operates the continent’s flagship competitions including the European Championship and UEFA Champions League, was the first to condemn the plan, arguing that the World Cup is not FIFA’s to sell. UEFA has already called an emergency online meeting for its 55 member federations this Thursday to coordinate a collective response.

Concern has also spread to other continental confederations. The Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF) released a public statement Wednesday highlighting deep unease over the lack of transparent due process in the plan’s development. The Asian Football Confederation, based in Kuala Lumpur, added its voice to criticism, saying it was disappointed that such a high-stakes proposal became public before member confederations had the chance to review and debate the details internally.

Regional governing bodies warn that the restructuring would create direct competition for their own elite competitions, as FIFA would likely increase the frequency of men’s and women’s World Cups and expanded Club World Cups to boost revenue for private investors, undercutting the value and audience share of existing continental events.

Opposition has also extended to the highest levels of British politics, where the country is currently lined up to host the 2035 Women’s World Cup in a joint bid by England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland — a bid FIFA is expected to formally approve at a November virtual meeting. Andy Burnham, a lifelong soccer fan and prominent British political leader, publicly rejected the plan in an Instagram video message, saying “Football does not belong to investors. Once you have sold a piece of (the World Cup), you have sold out. Football belongs to the fans. It always has, and it always will.”

This is not the first time Infantino has pushed an ambitious, controversial restructuring initiative during his 11-year tenure as FIFA president. Critics have long noted that Infantino has increasingly advanced major changes to global soccer without meaningful consultation with key stakeholders. Past proposals have included a FIFA Peace Prize and a plan to shift the men’s World Cup from a four-year cycle to a biennial event, both of which faced widespread pushback. This new plan also echoes the 2021 European Super League controversy, when widespread British political opposition — including threats of legislation from then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson — helped collapse the breakaway competition that threatened UEFA’s Champions League, a project that Infantino had quietly supported behind the scenes.

Fresh off lifting the 2026 FIFA World Cup trophy with the Spanish national side, defender Marc Cucurella has made good on a pre-victory pledge, permanently honoring his winning head coach with a custom tattoo.

Cucurella was a key contributor to Spain’s historic 1-0 final win over Argentina earlier this month, playing every single minute of the team’s entire World Cup campaign. The 28-year-old, who completed a high-profile £52 million transfer from Chelsea to Real Madrid back in June, took to social media to unveil his new ink: a detailed portrait of Luis de la Fuente, the manager who led Spain to their World Cup triumph, holding the iconic golden trophy, set against a background emblazoned with the number 26 to mark this year’s tournament.

Alongside photos and behind-the-scenes video of the tattoo sitting process, Cucurella simply posted: “Promise kept.”

The lighthearted agreement between player and coach came to light after the final whistle of the World Cup final, when De la Fuente addressed the promise with reporters during his post-match press conference. Joking about the commitment, the manager said: “I’ve already told them, ‘did you make a mistake? They did, but they’ll enjoy it. I’m not so terribly ugly that they will need to put it somewhere nobody can see it. But it makes me laugh and I am proud they keep their promises.”‘

This is not the first quirky personal detail that has drawn attention to Cucurella during the World Cup run. The defender previously revealed he carried his wife’s pyjama top with him throughout the tournament as a good luck charm, and explained that his signature long curly hair is styled that way specifically so his young child can spot him easily in the crowd during matches.

A rare proposed consolidation between two U.S. Olympic national governing bodies has thrown the future of American biathlon into question, as leaders of the U.S. Biathlon Association push to bring the sport under the umbrella of U.S. Ski & Snowboard (USSS) — a move backed by financial necessity according to supporters, but decried as an existential threat by long-time participants of the sport. The U.S. Biathlon board of directors is scheduled to cast its final vote on the integration plan this Wednesday, months after exploration of the proposal began in the wake of another medal-less performance by American biathletes at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics. Members of the association were first formally notified of the talks in May.

U.S. Biathlon CEO Jack Gierhart told association members that shifting fiscal pressures left leadership with little choice but to explore the partnership: the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee has cut the organization’s funding by 22%, and private corporate sponsors have reduced their commitments amid broader economic tightening. Integration with USSS, Gierhart argues, would open access to expanded funding streams, enhanced support services for competing athletes, and greater exposure to the larger cross-country skiing community to recruit new competitors to biathlon, a hybrid sport that combines cross-country skiing and precision rifle shooting. Sophie Goldschmidt, CEO of USSS, told the Associated Press that the larger governing body is well-positioned to elevate American biathlon to new competitive heights, saying “We feel that we can help take biathlon to the next level.”

USSS is undeniably a powerhouse in American winter sports: it currently oversees 11 Olympic disciplines, counts 250 elite athletes among its ranks including global superstars like alpine skiing champion Mikaela Shiffrin and cross-country skiing gold medalist Jessie Diggins, holds a $70 million annual budget, and boasts 40,000 registered members. By comparison, U.S. Biathlon operates on just a $4 million annual budget and counts only 1,407 registered members. Though biathlon is a massively popular spectator and participation sport across much of Europe, it has never produced an Olympic medal for the United States, a long-standing performance gap that has contributed to its limited domestic funding and profile.

Supporters of the merger argue the partnership would deliver mutual benefits for both organizations. Kikkan Randall, an Olympic cross-country skiing gold medalist and current USSS board member, noted that tapping into biathlon’s massive European popularity could open new marketing and sponsorship opportunities for the merged organization. “There’s a recognition of how big biathlon is in Europe. Being able to tap into that popularity and marketability is really intriguing,” Randall said. Under the proposed terms of the alliance, U.S. Biathlon would retain its own governing board (expanded to include USSS-appointed representatives) to manage sport-specific decisions, all existing U.S. Biathlon staff would transfer to the larger organization, and biathlon would secure two permanent seats on the USSS board. Gierhart emphasized that the additional resources from USSS would allow the organization to invest in grassroots growth: providing equipment to local clubs, expanding existing youth recruitment programs, and delivering much-needed support to underresourced community programs. “The long-term implications of what this could bring is really profound from a growing-the-sport perspective and pushing support out to the communities and clubs that need it,” Gierhart said.

But the proposal has sparked fierce pushback from a large cohort of long-time biathlon athletes, coaches, and supporters, who have organized town halls, launched an opposition website, and filed formal ethics complaints against U.S. Biathlon board leadership. Critics argue the board has fast-tracked the merger without sufficient input from rank-and-file members, and warn that biathlon will be sidelined and eventually erased within the larger organization, overshadowed by more popular, high-revenue sports like alpine skiing and snowboarding. Many opponents fear the merger will lead to eventual funding cuts for the national biathlon team, pointing to USSS’s past cuts to funding for U.S. ski jumping in 2010 and Nordic combined in 2014 as a cautionary example.

“I don’t want to see biathlon disappear into another organization,” said Art Stegen, author of *Unique and Unknown: The Story of Biathlon in the United States*, who is one of the most visible voices of opposition. Stegen, retired sports lawyer Ed Williams, and former Olympic biathlete Joan Wilder filed a formal ethics complaint with the U.S. Biathlon ethics committee last week, alleging that board chair Bob Hall violated organizational rules by holding closed merger discussions without notifying the full membership, and that board member Dexter Paine holds an unreported conflict of interest due to his concurrent seat on the USSS board. While the ethics committee acknowledged this month that “it appears there is merit to some of the allegations,” it dismissed the complaints entirely, noting it lacks the legal authority to remove a sitting board member.

A 2024 analysis of the merger conducted by veteran biathletes Jon Schafer and Marc Sheppard concluded that any partnership with USSS should only be pursued as a “last resort.” The pair’s interviews with hundreds of members of the biathlon and cross-country skiing communities found that “The overwhelming consensus is that everyone is terrified of destroying the long-term future of the organization for possible short-term financial gain.” Opponents also argue that grassroots growth is already underway through existing programs, and that the sport can expand its revenue and membership without ceding control to a larger governing body.

Beyond internal opposition, the proposal also faces a potential major legal obstacle under federal Olympic law. Steven Bank, a UCLA law professor specializing in sports law, explained that the 1978 Ted Stevens Olympic and Amateur Sports Act bars one national governing body from overseeing multiple sports that fall under separate international federations. Currently, USSS falls under the governance of the International Ski and Snowboard Federation, while biathlon is governed by the International Biathlon Union — a separation that could put the merger in conflict with the 46-year-old law, which was designed to prevent jurisdictional disputes over team selection, rule-setting, and competitive standards.

This is not the first time USSS leadership has pursued expansion through acquisition: Goldschmidt launched a bid to take over USA Surfing last year, but abandoned the effort after widespread opposition from surfing community members. Goldschmidt confirmed to the AP that USSS is also currently in exploratory talks with USA Skateboarding about a potential future partnership, signaling that the biathlon merger is part of a broader push by the winter sports powerhouse to expand its footprint across Olympic sports.