FIFA accuses UEFA of waging smear campaign to protect European elite from emerging nations
· Yahoo Sports
FIFA has accused UEFA of running a smear campaign against them and president Gianni Infantino.
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The claim comes after European football’s governing body threatened criminal proceedings against the FIFA chief.
The row centres on Infantino’s plan to sell a 20% stake in FIFA’s commercial and regulatory operations for $4.2 billion. UEFA’s lawyers called the valuation ‘absurdly low’.
They also asked for documents in preparation for possible criminal proceedings in Switzerland.
Photo by Chris Brunskill/Fantasista/Getty ImagesFIFA hits back at UEFA’s legal filing
FIFA responded with a motion asking for the document request to be delayed or rejected outright. According to The Athletic, the filing does not hold back.
‘Although these applications are framed as legal actions with titles and file numbers, they are nothing more than press statements, supporting the smear campaign UEFA is waging against FIFA and its leadership,’ it said.
The filing also accused UEFA of leaking to the media before submitting the applications, and of basing much of its case on press reports.
FIFA claimed UEFA deliberately obstructed the FFE project, including threatening a European boycott of FIFA tournaments if the plan was not dropped.
According to the filing, UEFA’s real motive is protecting the established order.
‘If football in the developing world is strengthened, global competition increases, which ultimately reduces UEFA’s market power and provides more competition for its flagship tournaments,’ it said.
‘By raising funds to allow some of FIFA’s smaller member associations to develop football better, FFE would have led to more players from those countries being selected to represent their home nations, and playing in their domestic leagues, instead of playing abroad.’
Photo by Harry Murphy – UEFA/UEFA via Getty ImagesInfantino is not the only target of the filings. Identical legal requests also target Thrive, Joshua Kushner and JP Morgan in New York, plus Pan Ventures and its chief executive Greg Maffei.
Kushner broke his silence on the fallout last week, saying Thrive did not appreciate ‘the political dynamics of global football’, and that they would not have got involved had they known what it would turn into.
The battle between the two governing bodies is now firmly in the courts. Where it ends is anyone’s guess, but the gloves are very much off.
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