FIFA wants to package the commercial rights to its men's and women's World Cups into a new company valued at roughly $20 billion, and sell a slice to private investors — with Thrive Capital, the firm led by Joshua Kushner, expected to lead the buyer group.

The proposed entity, called FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE), would hold the rights to FIFA's tournaments and raise $4.2 billion by selling minority, non-controlling stakes to long-term investors, according to Deadline. JP Morgan Chase is working with FIFA to structure the deal. The plan was first surfaced by investigations in the Financial Times and The Times.

FIFA has stated that a vehicle founded by Kushner is expected to lead the investor group, Reuters reported. That group would operate through a holding company called Thrive Eternal, according to The Wall Street Journal. Bob Iger, former CEO of Disney, has also shown interest alongside Kushner, per The Athletic. Kushner, the brother of Jared Kushner — President Donald Trump's son-in-law — founded Thrive Capital, which also holds a stake in the San Francisco Giants baseball team.

The response from inside football has been fierce. UEFA, European football's governing body, released an unprecedented statement condemning the plan and declaring that the World Cup "is not FIFA's to sell," Deadline reported. UEFA members are now meeting to discuss a potential boycott of the World Cup in response.

Former FIFA President Sepp Blatter weighed in on social media, calling the relationship between FIFA's current president and the US president "deeply damaging to football." Gianni Infantino, FIFA's president since 2016, stands to personally make millions by becoming FFE commissioner after his expected third term expires in 2031, according to The Times.

FIFA has countered the criticism by claiming that more than $10 billion from the FFE deals would be redistributed to its 211 member associations — the national federations that govern football in their respective countries.

What makes this standoff unusual is the rare open break between FIFA and UEFA, two bodies that have historically managed their tensions behind closed doors. A World Cup boycott threat from European nations, if it moved from discussion to action, would strike at the commercial heart of the tournament itself. The Kushner family connection to the sitting US president adds a political dimension that has clearly rattled figures across the sport.

Whether the FFE plan proceeds, and whether UEFA's boycott talk hardens into something more concrete, may shape how football's biggest commercial assets are owned for decades to come.