UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin and CONCACAF President Victor Montagliani have formally requested an independent audit of FIFA’s financial reserves and proposed a $2.1 billion distribution to the organization’s 211 member associations. The move underscores escalating friction between FIFA’s leadership and its confederation members regarding the cancellation of the FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE) project.
In a letter dated Friday addressed to FIFA President Gianni Infantino, the two vice-presidents argued that FIFA possesses sufficient surplus funds to significantly increase payouts without relying on the abandoned plan to sell stakes in its competitions to private investors. Their proposal would guarantee at least $10 million to each member association during the 2027-30 cycle, in addition to the funding already allocated under the existing Forward Programme.
Ceferin and Montagliani stated that their analysis of FIFA’s published budgets and financial statements suggests the FFE was unnecessary. They noted that FIFA is projected to conclude the 2023-26 cycle with reserves reaching approximately $6 billion, the highest level in the governing body’s history. According to their calculations, even after distributing $2.1 billion, FIFA’s reserves would remain above $1.5 billion throughout the next cycle—roughly 50 percent higher than the minimum reserve target FIFA itself set for the current period.
The presidents characterized the issue as a matter of institutional governance, asserting that development funding should not be contingent on member associations’ ability to independently assess FIFA proposals. “Development is an institutional responsibility of FIFA – not a matter of individual discretion,” the letter read.
While acknowledging their analysis is preliminary and based on published results for 2022-25 combined with estimates for 2026, Ceferin and Montagliani called for a full independent review with access to all underlying data. They suggested that once the year-end financial position is clear, the FIFA Council could decide whether to authorize a larger distribution now and whether to implement an equivalent payout in the 2031-34 cycle.
The proposal comes as Infantino prepares to seek re-election in March 2027, with opponents currently struggling to unite behind a single challenger. The two confederation heads also plan to solicit support from the presidents of the remaining four continental confederations. As of now, FIFA has not provided an immediate response to requests for comment.
Sounds like political maneuvering ahead of the 2027 election. Let’s see if the other confederations back them up.
Is $2.1 billion really enough? With inflation and rising costs, every association deserves a fairer share of the pie.
Wait, they want an audit of FIFA’s finances? That’s bold. I wonder if Infantino will actually agree to this.
FIFA having $6 billion in reserves while cutting development funds is outrageous. They should just pay up.