UEFA moved first, with its 55 member associations voting Thursday to boycott all FIFA competitions — including the World Cup — if the plan proceeded. "The World Cup cannot be treated as an investment product," UEFA stated. "No part of it should ever be surrendered to private investors." CONCACAF, representing 41 nations across North and Central America and the Caribbean, followed hours later, citing a lack of due process and an artificially short deadline. The Asian Football Confederation, long a pillar of Infantino's political base, then declared solidarity with UEFA and CONCACAF. Together, the three confederations represent 151 of FIFA's 211 votes.
The defection spread to Infantino's inner circle. Carlos Cordeiro, his senior adviser and former U.S. Soccer Federation president, resigned from the White House World Cup Task Force, calling the proposal "a bad deal for football" that would "mortgage football's future." FIFA's chief operating officer, Kevin Lamour, said the administration had been "deceived" about the project. British Prime Minister Andy Burnham called Infantino "the wrong man" to lead FIFA.
The episode unfolds against a backdrop of record commercial success. The 2026 World Cup, co-hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico, generated approximately $15 billion in revenue — well above the $11 billion pre-tournament projection — pushing FIFA's 2023-2026 cycle total toward $13 billion, a 72% increase over the previous cycle. That financial windfall was the asset Infantino sought to monetize.