GIANNI INFANTINO ISSUES PUBLIC APOLOGY AS FIFA ANNOUNCES MASSIVE $6.35 BILLION INVESTMENT PLAN FOLLOWING WORLD CUP SUCCESS

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Gianni Infantino has issued a direct apology following the FIFA Council meeting in Zurich after the controversial FIFA Forward Enterprise proposal was permanently scrapped. However, record commercial returns from the 2026 World Cup have allowed the governing body to announce a massive financial boost for member associations.

Massive funding package unveiled

FIFA President Infantino issued a public apology following the latest FIFA Council meeting at the Home of FIFA in Zurich. The chief executive addressed past mistakes regarding the controversial FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE) proposal, which has now been permanently withdrawn.

Despite the governance setback, FIFA presented a landmark financial initiative called the FIFA Surplus Solidarity Programme. Driven by exceptional commercial returns from the 48-team 2026 World Cup, the plan will more than double development funding for the 2027-2030 period.

The total support package will reach $6.35 billion, drawing from an estimated cycle surplus of between $5.2 billion and $5.6 billion. Under the new proposal, allocations per FIFA Member Association will rise to $25 million while maintaining $1.7 billion in hard reserves.

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Infantino addresses the past

The primary focal point of the meeting centred on the withdrawn FFE initiative, which had drawn sharp criticism from key stakeholders in recent months. Infantino took responsibility for how the project was handled and communicated to the global football community.

"As has been said many times since 2016, FIFA’s money, including its reserves, belongs to the 211 FIFA Member Associations, and the proposal to increase investment across all FIFA Member Associations, confederations and other stakeholders to USD 6.35 billion aims to reinforce our unwavering commitment to further supporting football development and access globally thanks to the outstanding financial result of the FIFA World Cup 2026," Infantino stated

"In ten years since I became FIFA President, we have gone from USD 1 million per FIFA Member Association to USD 25 million each – all across the world. At the same time, I would like to thank everyone who has made suggestions over the past few months on the distribution of FIFA’s funds to our 211 FIFA Member Associations as we need to look forward in a spirit of unity and in the best interests of football."

Governance under the microscope

The FIFA Council confirmed that the FFE initiative will not reappear in any form, with externally appointed lawyers updating members on confidential legal proceedings in the United States. A new working group featuring representatives from across the confederations will now examine FIFA's overall governance framework.

To ensure transparency, the distribution of the $6.35 billion funding will align directly with women's football, youth development, long-term projects, and infrastructure. The plan remains subject to final approval mechanisms to ensure strict control and audit standards.

"We held discussions in relation to the FIFA Forward Enterprise project, where everyone had the opportunity to ask questions and express their views," Infantino said.

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Key decisions on horizon

The FIFA administration will now work alongside relevant committees to finalise the eligibility, application, and disbursement rules for the Surplus Solidarity Programme. The full framework will be submitted to the FIFA Council at its next meeting in December 2026.

Several other administrative matters were also progressed during the Zurich summit. The Football Social Responsibility Committee will assess the FIFA Peace Prize, while the Legal Committee conducts a review of disciplinary procedures following Folarin Balogun's suspended ban.

All major proposals, including the expanded funding distribution plan, will ultimately be put forward for formal approval at the 77th FIFA Congress in March 2027.

- Yosua Arya

UEFA BOSS CEREFIN SAYS TRUST IN WORLD FOOTBALL REMAINS BROKEN AFTER FIFA INVESTMENT ROW

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* Ceferin says collapsed FIFA investment plan shattered unity of world football

* Proposal to sell 20% stake in FIFA commercial rights was dropped in July

* Infantino proposes independent external review of FIFA governance for strategic initiatives

UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin said trust in world football had not been restored following the collapse of FIFA’s controversial private-investment plan, in his first public comments since FIFA President Gianni Infantino offered a review of the governing body’s decision-making.

In a video address to the Portugal Football Summit on Wednesday, Ceferin said unity, transparency and governance that served the wider game were essential to maintaining trust in football.

"Yet not everyone places the game above their own ambitions,” Ceferin said.

"Trust in our sport rests on three pillars: unity, transparency, and governance that serves the many, not the few. In recent times, all three were disregarded by people who had sworn to protect them.

"The project that shattered the unity of world football may be abolished, but the trust it broke has not returned, and repairing it is our work now.”

Ceferin did not name Infantino or FIFA directly, but his comments were an apparent reference to the abandoned proposal to sell a 20% stake in FIFA’s commercial rights, including the World Cup, to private investors.

The plan was dropped in July after fierce opposition from UEFA, the Asian Football Confederation and CONCACAF.

"Football is not for sale,” Ceferin said. "That is the message UEFA has carried for years, and I'm certain this summit will carry it further.”

His intervention came two days after Infantino sought to address the fallout in a letter to the FIFA Council and the presidents of all 211 member associations.

Infantino said he would ask the Council whether it wanted to commission an independent external review of FIFA’s governance framework for major strategic initiatives and proposed consultations with confederations, member associations and other stakeholders on strengthening its decision-making processes.

He said any review could examine the roles of the president, bureau, Council and Congress and ways to improve transparency and accountability.

The letter has so far failed to win over several federations that had criticised Infantino over the investment proposal.

Infantino has said he remains fully committed to leading FIFA and is expected to seek another term at the presidential election in March 2027.

Ceferin said those running the sport needed to remember whom they served.

"The game will remain safe if those who govern it remember whom they govern it for," he said.

- REUTERS/OEIRAS, PORTUGAL

SCOTTISH FA WITHDRAWS SUPPORT FOR FIFA PRESIDENT GIANNI INFANTINO

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The Scottish Football Association has lost confidence in Gianni Infantino and will not be voting for his re-election as president of Fifa, chief executive Ian Maxwell has told BBC Sport.

Infantino is under increasing pressure over his attempt, later abandoned, to create a new company to manage the commercial and ticketing rights of all Fifa competitions, including the World Cups, with 21% to be sold off to a private investment company.

Fifa Forward Enterprise (FFE) was aborted after widespread criticism from several confederations, led by Uefa, which has threatened a boycott of all Fifa competitions.

"The position of the SFA has been clear since the 55 Uefa associations met," said Maxwell, speaking as he announced Belgian Sebastian Pocognoli as the new Scotland head coach.

"We have aligned ourselves with the Uefa position and 55 nations are stronger than one voice.

"Their statement since then has talked about a lack of confidence in the Fifa leadership and the Scottish FA agree completely with that decision.

"The SFA will not be voting for Gianni Infantino come the re-election in early 2027."

Maxwell rejected the suggestion that the SFA had previously failed to publicly state it no longer supported Infantino because its president, Mike Mulraney, heads up the Fifa finance committee.

The Football Associations of England, Wales and the Republic of Ireland have already declared they have withdrawn support for Infantino, who is scheduled to stand for a fourth term as president in March.

'A profound lack of judgement'

Last week, Fifa and Infantino were accused of breaking trust "through deception", in an open letter issued by Uefa, Concacaf and the Asian Football Confederation.

The letter, signed by the presidents and general secretaries of the three regional governing bodies, said recent controversy over the FFE proposal was fundamentally about "the integrity of the game, and the integrity of those elected to lead it".

While the statement did not name Infantino, sources have told BBC Sport that it should be seen as an opportunity for him to resign and leave his position with dignity.

Fifa has committed to presenting a report on FFE to the next meeting of the Fifa council, which is expected to take place in October.

The three confederations said this failed to "recognise that proper governance in the face of such a profound lack of judgement would require that such a review be conducted by a fully independent third party".

It also underlined a legal warning made by Uefa that Fifa should not delete or destroy any documents related to the abandoned plans.

BBC Sport understands that there have been preliminary discussions between the three confederations over breakaway competitions, should Infantino remain in situ. However, substantive talks are yet to begin, according to others.

At present there is no candidate who has put their name forward to stand against Infantino, before a 18 November deadline.

Very difficult to predict who has the upper hand

The football world appears to have been split down the middle by the issue, with the confederations of Africa, South American and Oceania having backed Infantino.

But even within confederations, there is disagreement and it makes it very difficult to predict whether Infantino or his opponents have the upper hand in this battle.

In Oceania, which has 11 member associations, New Zealand has said it will not follow the confederation and vote for him.

Mexico, Grenada and St Kitts and Nevis have broken away from the other 32 Concacaf nations to support the Fifa president.

Of the 46 Asian confederations members, so far eight countries have split to champion Infantino's cause - the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Sri Lanka, Lebanon, Kuwait, Mongolia, the Philippines and Bhutan.

The Fifa Council, on which there are 36 confederation and national association heads plus Infantino, seems similarly split.

It raises questions about whether Infantino has the political power to govern Fifa, even if he wins an election of the 211 member associations.

The first test of Uefa's threat is just over three weeks away, when the Fifa Under-20 Women's World Cup is set to kick off. It is being hosted by Poland and features five other European nations, including England.

- Dale Johnson and Chris McLaughlin

FIFA TO SEEK LEGAL ADVICE ON PALESTINIAN PROPOSAL TO SUSPEND ISRAEL FROM INTERNATIONAL SOCCER

 BANGKOK (AP) — Facing a Palestinian proposal to suspend Israel from international soccer because of the conflict with Hamas, FIFA bought time Friday by agreeing to seek legal advice before holding an extraordinary council meeting within two months.

FIFA president Gianni Infantino outlined the plan to 211 member federations after leaders of the Palestinian and Israel soccer bodies spoke at the governing body's annual congress in Bangkok.

“Now, due to the obvious sensitivity of these matters, FIFA will mandate as of now independent legal expertise to analyze and assess the three requests made by the Palestinian Football Association and ensure that the statutes and regulations of FIFA are applied in the correct way in order to ensure a fair and due process,” Infantino said.

"This legal assessment will have to allow for inputs and claims of both member associations. The results and the recommendations ... will be forwarded to the FIFA council.

“Due to the urgency of the situation, an extraordinary FIFA Council will be convened and will take place before July 20 to review the results of the legal assessment and to take the decisions that are appropriate.”

The Palestinian soccer federation has now spoken at a FIFA Congress at least five times since 2014 without making the progress it wants.

Palestinian soccer's issues with Israel in that decade have included travel restrictions on its players, the Israeli league including teams from West Bank settlements, and the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

In the past 10 years, FIFA under two different presidents has deferred a vote or decision, or created a working group to report back at a later meeting.

The Palestine Football Association proposal to 211 member federations called for “appropriate sanctions, with immediate effect, against Israeli teams" and was forecast in FIFA documents released last month.

The motion noted “international law violations committed by the Israeli occupation in Palestine, particularly in Gaza” and cited FIFA statutory commitments on human rights and against discrimination.

The Palestinian FA wrote that “all the football infrastructure in Gaza has been either destroyed, or seriously damaged, including the historic stadium of Al-Yarmuk.”

On Friday at the congress, Palestinian soccer's leader Jibril Rajoub said “the Palestinian people, including the Palestinian football family, are enduring an unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe.”

He said 193 footballers were among the thousands of Palestinians to die in the ongoing war which erupted Oct. 7 with Hamas’ deadly attack on Israel.

More than 35,000 Palestinians have been killed in the war, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and combatants in its figures. About 80% of Gaza’s population have been driven from their homes.

Rajoub, who said he had been threatened because of his sanctions proposal, urged FIFA delegates not to delay the vote.

“The Israeli Minister of Foreign Affairs has made serious threats to imprison me if I do not withdraw this proposal, but no power in the world can stand in the way of truth,” Rajoub said.

But Infantino said the matter couldn't go to a full vote of the membership on Friday because it had to be dealt with by FIFA’s governing council.

“I do not want to divide our 211 member countries,” he said. “I have a responsibility as president to apply the statutes of FIFA and its regulations, whatever my personal conviction on these and other terrible matters around the world.”

He said at the FIFA council meeting on Wednesday, all 37 members unanimously agreed to condemn the acts of violence that have taken place and decided to send a strong message of solidarity.

“The FIFA Council also reiterated that football should not and should never become a hostage of politics and always remain ... a force of good uniting people rather than dividing,” Infantino said.

The meeting Friday included delegates from Russia, whose national and club teams have been suspended from international competitions since the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

The legal argument put by FIFA and UEFA was the refusal of other European teams to play Russians would cause chaos in competitions.

Israel has played in UEFA competitions as a member since 1994 and no European federation has refused to play its teams.

FIFA LIFTS ZIMBABWE 🇿🇼 SUSPENSION IN TIME FOR WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS

FIFA has lifted its 18-month suspension of the Zimbabwe Football Association (ZIFA) just days before the draw for the African qualification competition for the 2026 World Cup, officials confirmed on Monday.

An interim normalisation committee has been appointed to run the affairs of ZIFA until elections for a new management team are held.

Zimbabwe was suspended by the global governing body in February 2022 following perceived government interference in the running of the troubled football association.