The dispute between FIFA and UEFA has added a new chapter and moved its setting to the courts of the United States. The organization led by Gianni Infantino filed a document with the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida requesting to reject a request from the European body to access documentation related to FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE), the private investment project that was discarded months ago.
In the document, FIFA's lawyers accused UEFA of acting in bad faith and conducting a campaign aimed at harming Infantino. According to the legal representatives of the entity, "UEFA's conduct demonstrates that its submission was made in bad faith and with the purpose of harassment".
The conflict originates from the FFE, an initiative promoted by Infantino that contemplated the creation of a commercial subsidiary and the sale of at least 20% of future commercial rights of FIFA to a group of investors for $4.2 billion. The project was abandoned just days after being made public in July, following strong opposition from various federations and, especially, from UEFA.
Now, the European body is trying to gather documentation through U.S. courts to support a potential criminal complaint in Switzerland against Infantino for alleged financial mismanagement. One of the aspects it seeks to investigate is related to the economic conditions of FFE and a supposed personal benefit for the FIFA president.
The European entity stated in previous submissions that the agreed value for the operation was below market value and suggested that Infantino could assume an executive position within the new structure. FIFA categorically rejected that interpretation and questioned the accusations in its document. "It falsely claims that Mr. Infantino sought to have a personal financial interest in the project", responded the organization's lawyers.
