Infantino planning to sell stakes in the World Cup to investors | Scrapped

[Catt]

Give it to Lise Klaveness.

 

[giorno]

You've missed the vital point, that this is the direct result of the most disproportionate democratic process possible. You can reach a majority vote which represents a tiny fraction of the voting population, or more relevant to this case, a majority vote while representing a tiny fraction of the professional football players worldwide. You're still completely brushing aside how this is supposed to be fair or just.

This is false. You can't reach a majority vote if ir represents a tiny fraction of the voting population by association. Or, yes, you can, if we go by total population. In which case, a coalition of China, India, Indonesia, Nigeria and the USA could effectively rule FIFA.

Bolded might be a fair criticism, and a basis for a proportional system, sure

But then, if those "smaller" countries end up getting screwed on funding, you risk effectively creating an entrenched oligarchy, as they won't have the financial capability to expand

A better system would be a combination vote where you need to reach a certain threshold in terms of votes and a threshold in terms of represented demographic. The current system only has the former, and not the latter, so how can you so easily claim it is the fairest system possible? My suggestion would rule out that a small number of powerful nations gets to dictate terms, because you can't reach a majority vote that way, or that you reach a majority vote that doesn't reach sufficient representation. There are possible issues with every system, but this is already a potential improvement.

demographics intended as registered players, or total population?

I think any change to the current system requires first enshrining a funding system that ensures everybody gets appropriate funding based on population, current development and future development, which would require a majorityo(or even supermajority) vote under the current 1:1 system to change, as well as ensuring the autonomy of the individual confederations from FIFA(i.e. no FIFA interference if CAF decides to hold the Afcon annually for example)

Once that's done, you can make changes to the voting system

 

[Ainu]

This is false. You can't reach a majority vote if ir represents a tiny fraction of the voting population by association. Or, yes, you can, if we go by total population. In which case, a coalition of China, India, Indonesia, Nigeria and the USA could effectively rule FIFA.

Bolded might be a fair criticism, and a basis for a proportional system, sure

But then, if those "smaller" countries end up getting screwed on funding, you risk effectively creating an entrenched oligarchy, as they won't have the financial capability to expand

demographics intended as registered players, or total population?

I think any change to the current system requires first enshrining a funding system that ensures everybody gets appropriate funding based on population, current development and future development, which would require a majorityo(or even supermajority) vote under the current 1:1 system to change, as well as ensuring the autonomy of the individual confederations from FIFA(i.e. no FIFA interference if CAF decides to hold the Afcon annually for example)

Once that's done, you can make changes to the voting system

I only used population because we were talking about democracies, as I said, registered football players would be more relevant here. That's what FIFA is supposed to represent. And yes, you absolutely can find a configuration of 106 members that represents a tiny fraction of registered players worldwide.

Anyhow, why are we suddenly talking about funding? This entire discussion is about FIFA's voting mechanisms. It's all academic anyway, because you can only change the voting mechanism by running it by the current one, which is exactly the issue.

 

[Eendracht maakt macht]

I only used population because we were talking about democracies, as I said, registered football players would be more relevant here. That's what FIFA is supposed to represent. And yes, you absolutely can find a configuration of 106 members that represents a tiny fraction of registered players worldwide.

Anyhow, why are we suddenly talking about funding? This entire discussion is about FIFA's voting mechanisms. It's all academic anyway, because you can only change the voting mechanism by running it by the current one, which is exactly the issue.

UEFA should break away. This is the moment. Worst thing that can happen is that no other country is following. We will have a Euro’s every two year. It’s a shame of course but better then keep selling our souls to corruption.

 

[giorno]

Anyhow, why are we suddenly talking about funding?

Because that is the key issue at the heart of everything. That's how Infantino got the job, that's what kept the various confederations loyal....and that's why some are turning on him now(because UEFA is wielding the very scary weapon called "we stop funding you guys if you don't do what we want on this")

 

[JPRouve]

UEFA should break away. This is the moment. Worst thing that can happen is that no other country is following. We will have a Euro’s every two year. It’s a shame of course but better then keep selling our souls to corruption.

This is beyond naive, it's almost criminal. People should keep in mind that FIFA's current issues come from a UEFA man and we all know that he isn't the only shady UEFA executive or former executive. That's the first thing that needs to be acknowledged and from that point measures need to be taken that prevent FIFA from being totally controlled by that type of character.

Pretending that this issue doesn't include the UEFA and the character of its own executives while also suggesting that the UEFA should breakaway as a solution is essentially giving the keys of the mental institute to the patients.

 

[Eendracht maakt macht]

This is beyond naive, it's almost criminal. People should keep in mind that FIFA's current issues come from a UEFA man and we all know that he isn't the only shady UEFA executive or former executive. That's the first thing that needs to be acknowledged and from that point measures need to be taken that prevent FIFA from being totally controlled by that type of character.

Pretending that this issue doesn't include the UEFA and the character of its own executives while also suggesting that the UEFA should breakaway as a solution is essentially giving the keys of the mental institute to the patients.

UEFA is far better than FIFA. The fact that Infantino came from UEFA only makes UEFA’s argument against him even stronger.

I have far more confidence in a new governing body launched as a UEFA-led initiative than in continuing to muddle along with FIFA.

Would I prefer a completely new organization, independent of both UEFA and FIFA? Of course. But that’s not going to happen, and compared to FIFA, UEFA is a bastion of integrity.

 

[Burgah]

He couldn’t fecking sell it. He’s not respected.

He never had the makings of a varsity athlete

 

[Fr. Todd Unctious]

Quite the acheivement

 

[GuybrushThreepwood]

Clearly UEFA both have their flaws, whilst also being nowhere near as bad as FIFA.

I do think that the Nations League is both a positive thing for European teams (more games between heavyweights and more games between minnows allowing them to record morale boosting wins), and negative thing for non-European teams (reducing the window for them to play useful friendlies in Europe vs. European opponents). And the Conference League was clearly a positive addition to the club game as well.

When it comes to the club game, the expansion of the Champions League from 1999/2000 was of course a new dawn. I think that UEFA royally messed up by not packaging the TV rights for the Champions League and UEFA Cup (before it was rebranded to the Europa League) together, and by implementing such a huge gulf in prize money between their 2 club competitions (at that time). IMO all of that helped widen the financial chasm between different leagues and also between different clubs, push the 'super club era' etc.

So from a UK perspective, you'd get Sky bidding hefty money for Champions League rights, and BBC / Channel 5 bidding separately and relative peanuts for UEFA Cup rights.

When Everton were regulars in the UEFA Cup in the 00s, they were barely making any money from the competition. Serie A clubs took it even less seriously than Premier League clubs at that stage. Parma being desperate to exit the competition in 2004/2005, but still reaching the semis, was funny.

 

[roseguy64]

 

[Escobar]

UEFA should break away. This is the moment. Worst thing that can happen is that no other country is following. We will have a Euro’s every two year. It’s a shame of course but better then keep selling our souls to corruption.

Without the European countries, the interest in the WC will diminish, but it will make the EC a much more bigger event

 

[windycityfan]

The greed on this piece of shit knows no bounds. What a cushy gig he has. What a way to fumble the bag.

 

[clarkydaz]

Need more of this dirty washing, make his position untenable

 

[Melbourne Red]

He couldn’t fecking sell it. He’s not respected.

He never had the makings of a varsity athlete

All due respect, you got no f*ckin' idea what it's like to be Number One. Every decision you make affects every facet of every other f*ckin' thing. It's too much to deal with almost. And in the end you're completely alone with it all.

 

[Mike Smalling]

All due respect, you got no f*ckin' idea what it's like to be Number One. Every decision you make affects every facet of every other f*ckin' thing. It's too much to deal with almost. And in the end you're completely alone with it all.

Alright, but you gotta get over it.

 

[SalfordRed18]

Can only think, he got away with that sham of a world cup and thought feck it, I can do anything I want.

 

[One Night Only]

Can only think, he got away with that sham of a world cup and thought feck it, I can do anything I want.

Aye, that's exactly it, and Trump will have been in his ear too.

 

[Reiver]

There's no way this shithead should stay in his job. He's not just a cnut, he's a failure of a cnut.

 

[IronLionBryan]

Aye, that's exactly it, and Trump will have been in his ear too.

Yep and he'll quickly find out what sort of friendship he has with Trump once he's been turfed out of FIFA and his phone calls go unanswered.

 

[Wilt]

Get him out

 

[Melbourne Red]

Alright, but you gotta get over it.

Well, here's a rule you might remember. I'm the motherf*ckin' f*ckin' one who calls the shots!

 

[Red Stone]

The current system of every member having equal votes basically makes rampant corruption unavoidable. It's an inherently flawed system that makes zero sense in any way. All that needs to be done to secure votes for the presidency is promise immense riches to the 106 poorest and/or most easily bribable nations in exchange for their endorsement.

Unless we suddenly transition to a utopian society where the entire concept bribes are a distant memory I can't see how FIFA can be fixed without reforms starting at the very foundational level of the organisation. I guess a good starting point would be incredibly stringent requirements from both FIFA and all member associations to provide transparency and bookkeeping regarding where the funds they receive from FIFA are being spent. At the moment there doesn't really seem to be any oversight whatsoever, and Infantino can say that his idiotic plan is a huge "fiduciary benefit" to members who opt in all he wants, but if that money is just going to disappear into the pockets of some criminal slimeballs it's all for nought, and football loses out both from selling its soul to investors and not getting the investment put into it in the countries that need it most.

 

[whitbyviking]

It may be dead in this iteration but without real reform nothing will change. The wrong people have seen how much money can be made now. Make no mistake something else will already be happening in the background and it could end up unavoidable if this sin isn’t locked in by those opposed to it

 

[Rooney in Paris]

He should have walked 4 years ago after his ludicrous "today I feel a migrant worker" monologue. He's a waste of human skin.

 

[P-Ro]

All due respect, you got no f*ckin' idea what it's like to be Number One. Every decision you make affects every facet of every other f*ckin' thing. It's too much to deal with almost. And in the end you're completely alone with it all.

Let me ask you a question. Do you think Gianni is a little...weird about women?

 

[TPM]

Why not? Because of their population? Ok then, I guess the AFC should account for 60% of the total votes then

Oh, they're corruptible? And England and Spain are not? Spain, seriously? Villar? Negreira? Seriously?

Because half these countries know their team will never make a world cup so they are easily bribed. You don't take your vote seriously if you know you wont participate. Why should half these countries have a say?!

This is like your co worker doesn't invite you to his wedding yet you still have a vote for what food, music, and decorations will be picked.

 

[dumbo]

Hanged drawn and quartered, no less. He's vermin.

 

[G3079]

Whatever changes are made at FIFA, the very first thing that needs to die is that its president can literally stand there and say "vote for this thing I want and you get $20m right now, don't vote for it and get nothing". Money needs to be allocated according to a fixed key that was agreed upon, not according to the whims of whoever is at the head of the organisation. And no sitting on billions worth of slush funds. Some reserves and some flexibly assignable money for football projects is fine, of course. But none of that ridiculous nonsense that is the current situation. Spending and reserves all need to be transparent and accountable, overseen and challenged when questionable by the member states.

At its base the organisation needs to serve football, not the other way around.

 

[Ish]

Please get fecking rid. No confidence vote. Hope he’s on his ass and struggling to pay bills (fat chance!) in a couple of years. Corrupt Cnut

 

[surf]

Fire him for wearing those white shoes at the final game.

 

[RegisteredToSayOneThing]

"ITT: If you ignore all the corruption then there's no corruption!"

Got bored. Calculated it.

According to the CPI 61% of FIFA voting members are viewed as corrupt, and that's skewed left by the fact a lot of obviously more corrupt states got categorised by their usually less corrupt parent nation. And some are way more corrupt than others. Literally means you can corrupt your way to a voting majority and that's pretty easy to do with anonymous voting, still, in 2026...

Saved it all as a Corrupt-o-dex excel file if anyone wants it.... like if this comes up again and I'm not around.

Confederation / Bloc	Members Scored	Avg CPI Score	% Corrupt or Worse
CAF	53	32.2	92.5
CONMEBOL	10	36.9	80.0
UEFA – Former Eastern Bloc / USSR	25	44.8	72.0
AFC	44	41.0	65.9
CONCACAF	32	52.5	40.6
OFC	9	58.9	33.3
UEFA – Western/Other Europe	27	68.8	7.4

 

[Fluctuation0161]

same as with any elected official

in pratical terms, UEFA forcing the others to forgo their support, making it impossible for him to run at next year's elections

This is terrible. Football doesn't belong to the big european countries, Djibouti and Bhutan *should* have the same rights as everyone else

Unfortunately Infantino's stunt just gave those big european countries the excuse to do just that and still be seen as "protecting" football from "corrupt evil Djibouti and Bhutan, I mean do they know what a ball is over there?"

Infantino made this world cup the most expensive ever to attend. He is not working for the grass roots of football, or the smaller countries, he is just lining his own pockets and trying to sell off the World Cup to a private investors. Do you think the private investors will care more for UEFA nations who generate 70% of the income, or smaller nations?

We get better equality by getting a better leadership structure at FIFA, removing Infantino and his dodgy schemes are a vital stage 1.

 

[HookedOnAPhelan]

Yes, Infantino is corrupt. The solution should be to elect someone who isn't, not to disenfranchise smaller nations from the global running of the sport

Is it fair that a country with a population of 1 million has the same voting power as a country with 100 million?

 

[Bosnian_fan]

UEFA is not nearly as bad as FIFA, but we are essentially looking at two organisations that are the outcome of same processes.

The core value is not development of football but financial development. That is why every reform widens the gap between the rich and the "not so rich".

I am not really sure people in England can understand it because Premier League is a behemoth in its own right with a very fair distribution, where most clubs don't even rely on UEFA prize money, but across continent it is terrible.

I am not living under the illusion that smaller clubs like mine will be able to compete ever again, but the issue is, Anderlecht, Benfica, Porto, Ajax etc are awfully uncompetitive on continental level and the gap is widening year on year.

Champions League has had its last finalist from non-top-five leagues 22 years ago. After that season, there has been a grand total of two semifinalists from outside these leagues. PSV in 2005. and Ajax in 2019.

Is that seriously how people envisage good football development across continent? UEFA has helped create a landscape in which football across continent will come down to just a few clubs and even fewer leagues, and it is all drifting further and further.

Yes, UEFA is right about this World Cup idea, but that doesn't mean both FIFA and UEFA shouldn't be fundamentally dismantled and built from scratch.

I might be an old man yelling at the clouds at this point.

 

[giorno]

Is it fair that a country with a population of 1 million has the same voting power as a country with 100 million?

It's fairer than a proportional vote based on population

 

[Bright_Eyes]

Is it fair that a country with a population of 1 million has the same voting power as a country with 100 million?

You could also ask is it fair that a country has 100x the voting power of another.

 

[HTG]

It's fairer than a proportional vote based on population

Why? If one association represents 1 million football players interests and the other those of a 1000 players, how is it fair if they have the same vote? I’m not saying it should be going population only. But the matter is clearly more difficult, than you are making it out to be.

 

[Melbourne Red]

Let me ask you a question. Do you think Gianni is a little...weird about women?

Everyone knows he's been the biggest f*cking cooze hound around the past four or five years. His mid-life crisis. He'd f*ck a catcher's mitt!

 

[SuperiorXI]

They should scale voting power based on a footballing influence metric which is calculated by things such as registered professional players, registered stadia, registered leagues, match day revenue etc. Create a fair and balanced score and then divvy up voting rights based on this.

This makes it fair so that larger countries can increase their influence by increasing their investment into grassroots football in their own nation.

Probably imperfect and open to abuse, but better than the current system. Countries with more worldwide footballing influence should have greater voting power but never to the point of monopoly.