Infantino's right-hand man resigns over ‘unequivocal’ opposition to the sale of the World Cup

Criticism of Gianni Infantino's plan isn't coming only from outside. Carlos Cordeiro, senior advisor to the president of FIFA, submitted his resignation this Friday, "unequivocally" opposing the plan to sell a minority stake in the World Cup—both men's and women's—and the Club World Cup.

For Infantino, this plan is "a golden opportunity" for soccer.

In a statement reported by AFP, Cordeiro—Infantino's right-hand man for years—clarified that the FIFA president's idea is "a bad deal" for all stakeholders in the sport.

"Let me be clear: I ⁠had no involvement in this proposal, and I oppose it unequivocally. … It is a bad deal for FIFA's Member Associations, a bad deal for football, and a bad deal for the long-term future of the game," said Cordeiro, who served as senior advisor to the White House task force tasked with overseeing the 2025 Club World Cup and the 2026 World Cup.

"Selling a permanent stake in football's most valuable asset to raise $4.2 billion makes little sense. It's mortgaging football’s future without any compelling justification," he declared.

Cordeiro's criticism and resignation represent a major setback for Infantino. On Thursday, three of the six confederations that make up FIFA—UEFA (Europe), CONCACAF (North America, Central America, and the Caribbean), and the AFC (Asia)—rejected the idea of selling the world's most important soccer tournament, citing a lack of transparency in the process and how damaging it would be to the sport.

In fact, UEFA went a step further and issued an ultimatum: if the plan goes ahead, the 55 member associations that comprise it would never again participate in a tournament organized by FIFA, including the World Cup.