Ex-FIFA chief Blatter blasts plan to sell stake in World Cup to investors

play Live Sign upShow navigation menuNavigation menuNewsShow more news sectionsAfricaAsiaUS & CanadaLatin AmericaEuropeAsia PacificMiddle EastExplainedSportOpinionVideoMoreShow more sectionsFeaturesEconomyHuman RightsClimate CrisisInvestigationsInteractivesIn PicturesScience & TechnologyPodcastsTravelSponsored Contentplay Live Click here to searchsearchSign upSport|FootballEx-FIFA chief Blatter blasts plan to sell stake in World Cup to investorsSepp Blatter, FIFA chief for 17 years until 2015, has blasted new proposal that moves ‘people’s game’ further from fans. xwhatsapp-strokecopylinkgoogleAdd Al Jazeera on GoogleinfoFormer FIFA President Sepp Blatter was replaced by Gianni Infantino in 2015 [Stefan Wermuth/Reuters]By ReutersPublished On 29 Jul 202629 Jul 2026Former FIFA ⁠President Sepp Blatter ⁠has slammed the football governing body’s plans to create a $20bn subsidiary to run the World ⁠Cup, saying the tournament was not a commercial asset that belonged to a few executives. “Football belongs to no individual and ⁠to no institution. It belongs to the people,” Blatter told the news agency Reuters on Wednesday. “If FIFA were transferred into a profit-oriented corporate structure, it would lose its soul,” added Blatter, who was FIFA president for 17 ‌years until 2015. FIFA said on Tuesday it plans to create the subsidiary to run the World Cup and its other events, and will offer stakes of up to 20 percent in it to external investors. The move has provoked a furious response from European football authorities, including UEFA, which said ⁠FIFA was putting the game up for ⁠sale. Blatter said the World Cup should not become an investment product for private equity with investors seeking returns. “The FIFA World Cup is not a commercial ⁠asset that belongs to a handful of executives,” he said. “It is part of the ⁠cultural heritage of world football.” “FIFA is the ⁠guardian of the World Cup, not its owner.” Blatter said he was shocked at the idea, adding he would never have considered it when he ran ‌FIFA. Investors pursuing influence and profits run contrary to associations that follow the interests of their members, he said. “Modern football has survived ‌for ‌more than a century because it belongs to the people,” said Blatter. “That principle should never change.” Advertisement AboutAboutShow moreAbout UsCode of EthicsTerms and ConditionsEU/EEA Regulatory NoticePrivacy PolicyCookie PolicyCookie PreferencesAccessibility StatementSitemapWork for usConnectConnectShow moreContact UsUser Accounts HelpAdvertise with usStay ConnectedNewslettersChannel FinderTV SchedulePodcastsSubmit a TipPaid Partner ContentOur ChannelsOur ChannelsShow moreAl Jazeera ArabicAl Jazeera EnglishAl Jazeera Investigative UnitAl Jazeera MubasherAl Jazeera DocumentaryAl Jazeera BalkansAJ+Our NetworkOur NetworkShow moreAl Jazeera Centre for StudiesAl Jazeera Media InstituteLearn ArabicAl Jazeera Centre for Public Liberties & Human RightsAl Jazeera ForumAl Jazeera Hotel PartnersFollow Al Jazeera English: