{"id":34157,"date":"2026-08-26T14:37:31","date_gmt":"2026-08-26T14:37:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.godj.com\/sport\/gianni-infantino-uefa-set-to-drop-fifa-tournament-boycott-threat\/"},"modified":"2026-08-26T14:37:31","modified_gmt":"2026-08-26T14:37:31","slug":"gianni-infantino-uefa-set-to-drop-fifa-tournament-boycott-threat","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.godj.com\/sport\/gianni-infantino-uefa-set-to-drop-fifa-tournament-boycott-threat\/","title":{"rendered":"Gianni Infantino: Uefa set to drop Fifa tournament boycott threat"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\"><b class=\"ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3\">Uefa is set to drop its threat of boycotting Fifa competitions, having received assurances there will be no repeat of Gianni Infantino&#8217;s plan to sell off stakes in the World Cup to private investors, BBC Sport has been told.<\/b><\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">The matter will be discussed at a meeting of Uefa&#8217;s executive committee in Monaco on Thursday.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Earlier this month, European football&#8217;s governing body said that despite Infantino&#8217;s plan being aborted following widespread condemnation, the conditions required to prevent a boycott had <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/sport\/football\/articles\/c2k74yevgzwo\" class=\"ssrcss-1fqyhkk-InlineLink e1kn3p7n0\">&#8220;not been met&#8221;.<\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">&#8220;Assurances have to be made that such attempts to disfigure the game in this way will never be made again,&#8221; Uefa insisted.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">That came after Infantino had told national member associations that the FFE proposal was &#8220;now off the table&#8221;, and apologised for &#8220;errors&#8221;. <\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">If the boycott threat is lifted, it will mean next month&#8217;s Under-20 Women&#8217;s World Cup in Poland will proceed as planned.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Six European teams &#8211; England, France, Italy, Portugal, Spain and hosts Poland &#8211; are scheduled to play in the tournament.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Uefa has led the backlash against Infantino, and is expected to continue to push for an overhaul of Fifa&#8217;s leadership. Uefa president Aleksander Ceferin has said he expects Infantino to resign or to face a challenge to his role from another candidate at elections in March. <\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">&#8220;This isn&#8217;t a climbdown,&#8221; said one source close to the discussions, adding that Infantino&#8217;s opponents &#8220;will continue until there are wholesale changes&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">&#8220;It is not a Uefa defeat, rather the reality of avoiding hurting young players [over a] once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,&#8221; they added.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">&#8220;The actions and insistence on change will continue and will win out in the end.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Last month, European football&#8217;s 55 member associations <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/sport\/football\/articles\/c5y67zrrdddo\" class=\"ssrcss-1fqyhkk-InlineLink e1kn3p7n0\">voted to boycott all Fifa competitions<\/a> until the Fifa Forward Enterprises proposal was dropped &#8220;in its entirety and binding assurances have been given that Fifa will never again open its governance or competitions to private ownership&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Fifa and Uefa have been approached for comment. <\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Culture secretary Lisa Nandy said this month she would not support a boycott of the U20 World Cup. <\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">&#8220;I am not generally in favour of sporting boycotts full stop, because I think they divide people from one another. I think they unfairly penalise athletes and competitors who are not responsible for the reason that these boycotts take place,&#8221; she said. <\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">&#8220;What I would like to see actually is football coming together, resolving this, a change of leadership, a change of direction and a very clear message that football belongs to its fans and it will not have women and girls penalised when the women&#8217;s game is going from strength to strength. And our Lionesses are leading the world in that.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/sport\/football\/articles\/c5ye3j5n8vyo?at_medium=RSS&#038;at_campaign=rss\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Uefa is set to drop its threat of boycotting Fifa competitions, having received assurances there will be no repeat of Gianni Infantino&#8217;s plan to sell off stakes in the World Cup to private investors, BBC Sport has been told. The matter will be discussed at a meeting of Uefa&#8217;s executive committee in Monaco on Thursday. 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