UEFA has asked a United States federal court to deny FIFA’s American subsidiaries permission to join its legal effort to obtain evidence for a potential Swiss criminal case against FIFA President Gianni Infantino regarding his abandoned World Cup commercial rights proposal.
In a filing submitted Thursday to the Manhattan federal court, the European football governing body argued that FIFA (Americas) Inc and FWC2026 US Inc are attempting to improperly act as proxies for FIFA and Infantino, neither of whom has sought to enter the case. UEFA contended that the subsidiaries lack a direct legal interest in the New York proceedings because they are not targets of the contemplated Swiss investigation nor recipients of the proposed subpoenas.
The dispute centers on UEFA’s request under US discovery law, specifically Section 1782, to secure documents and testimony from Thrive Capital Management and its founder Joshua Kushner. UEFA believes these parties may hold information relevant to the proposed FIFA Forward Enterprise transaction—a plan Infantino withdrew on August 1 following widespread criticism from football associations and other opponents. The initiative had envisioned selling permanent stakes in the commercial and operational rights of the World Cup and other FIFA events to private investors.
UEFA has stated it is considering filing a criminal complaint in Switzerland alleging criminal mismanagement by Infantino and potentially other FIFA officials, though no formal charges have been brought. FIFA, which has not immediately responded to requests for comment, accused UEFA last week of conducting a “smear campaign” and characterized the discovery applications as a fishing expedition designed to damage FIFA’s leadership.
Infantino has denied any wrongdoing. Thorne Capital Management and Kushner did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Kushner is the brother of Jared Kushner, son-in-law of US President Donald Trump.
Addressing the subsidiaries’ intervention motion, UEFA argued that granting them a role before the court rules would contradict standard procedure. Typically, Section 1782 requests are granted initially without opposition and then tested through motions to quash. UEFA further asserted that Thrive and Kushner already possess legal representation capable of challenging any subpoenas once served, and that allowing the subsidiaries to intervene would create unnecessary delays by adding another round of briefing.
The court has not yet issued a ruling on either the discovery application or the motion to intervene. Infantino is scheduled to run for a fourth term as FIFA president in the elections set for March.
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