UEFA’s counsel lodged a Section 1782 application in the Southern District of Florida on Thursday, seeking sworn testimony and documents from two FIFA entities headquartered near Miami. A parallel discovery filing targeted Thrive Capital Management in Manhattan. Both are groundwork for a criminal complaint that UEFA intends to bring in Switzerland under Article 158 of the Swiss Criminal Code, which covers “criminal mismanagement” and carries a maximum sentence of five years.

As UEFA’s member associations gathered in Monaco ahead of the Champions League group-stage draw, ESPN’s Gabriele Marcotti reported that the routine confederation meeting doubled as cover for a coordinated legal assault prepared discreetly overnight and unveiled the following morning.

What the complaint targets

The action centres on a deal which Infantino has already dropped. Under the plan, FIFA would have transferred its commercial rights to a subsidiary called FIFA Forward Enterprise, with a 20% stake sold for $4.2 billion to an investor group led by Joshua Kushner’s Thrive Capital. The implied enterprise value was approximately $20 billion.

UEFA’s lawyers argue that figure is “absurdly low” and was neither the product of “an open, competitive auction, nor tested by any independent valuer.”

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The filing goes further, alleging:

“In truth, it was a vehicle for Infantino and that small circle to acquire a permanent stake in and otherwise profit from FIFA’s most valuable assets.”

Infantino dropped the proposal on 1 August after a fierce backlash from across the football pyramid. UEFA had by then labelled it a “shady, opaque backroom deal” and warned that “no UEFA national teams will participate in any FIFA competition for so long as these proposals remain alive.”

Boycott shelved after Monaco assurances

Aleksander Ceferin’s executive formally set aside the boycott threat in Monaco after receiving assurances the plan would not return. The lawsuits made clear the reprieve is narrow.

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Marcotti reported that European officials also signalled an ultimate escalation was still in play if guarantees were breached. A UEFA position quoted in his piece states:

“If worse comes to worse, we’ll pull out of the World Cup.”

According to ESPN, UEFA urged Infantino “not to seek another mandate” and pledged support for a credible alternative committed to integrity. Marcotti wrote that leadership at the Asian Football Confederation and Concacaf backs the push.

Confederations do not decide how their member associations vote. FIFA’s 211 members each cast their own ballot at the Congress, and any leadership challenge is settled one association at a time.

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Candidates must file by 18 November

Candidates must submit their paperwork by 18 November to stand in the next presidential election, which is scheduled for 18 March 2027 in Rabat, Morocco. Infantino is expected to seek a fourth term.

FIFA has publicly stood behind him. A senior FIFA official told TalkSPORT that Infantino “is doing what he can to ensure the best football is played” and pointed to what the official called “an extraordinary World Cup on so many fronts” as proof of his stewardship.

If UEFA’s discovery request is granted, its lawyers would obtain internal correspondence between Infantino, his advisers and the Kushner-led investor group.

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