FIFA COO releases damning statement about Gianni Infantino and World Cup sell-off plan

FIFA's chief operating officer, Kevin Lamour, has released a damning statement on Gianni Infantino's plans to sell the World Cup.

On Tuesday, Infantino announced plans to sell stakes in major tournaments, including the World Cup, to major investors.

US-based Thrive Capital, owned by Joshua Kushner, are expected to lead a proposed investor group, as Infantino aims to raise over $20 billion.

The FIFA president promised to offer $40 million to the national associations that backed his plan by September 19, but unsurprisingly, almost everyone is against his proposal.

UEFA's 55 members held an emergency meeting on Thursday, announcing they would boycott the World Cup if his plans went ahead.

Federations across the world are also strongly against the idea, with Concacaf and the CAF adopting the same stance as UEFA, making the majority not in favour of the FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE).

Unsurprisingly, it isn't just federations and countries who are rallying to stop the FIFA president from tarnishing the sport even further, as those close to him are taking a stand.

On Thursday, Infantino's senior advisor, Carlos Codeiro, resigned from his role after expressing his opposition over what he described as a "bad deal for the game".

Codeiro's explosive statement and subsequent exit were met with widespread applause, and he isn't the only one publicly voicing his opinion towards Infantino's proposal.

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Kevin Lamour makes damning statement on Gianni Infantino

In a statement shared with Graham Dunbar of the Associated Press, FIFA chief operating officer Kevin Lamour joined in on the critique of Infantino, saying FIFA staff were "deceived" by the 56-year-old's proposal.

"It is the project of one person. Not only must this project not go ahead, but the time has now come for football political leaders to ask themselves the right questions and make the right decisions," Lamour's statement read.

Lamour has urged political leaders to stand up and make their voices heard, something Prime Minister Andy Burnham has already done, stating the Swiss was the "wrong man" to lead FIFA.

The 45-year-old also added that FIFA's own administration were "deceived" about the project, which is a pretty damning admission about someone he's worked closely with for years.

He joined FIFA as a COO in November 2024 after serving as Deputy General Secretary for 17 years at UEFA.

During that time, Lamour worked alongside Infantino, who was UEFA's General Secretary on an interim basis in 2007 and permanently between 2009 and 2016.

Lamour was even a part of Infantino's campaign team in 2016 when the latter was elected president of FIFA, but after almost two decades of working together, he has underlined his view towards the proposal by putting his job on the line.

"And if that means I lose my job, then so be it. I will understand and respect that decision. At least I’ll sleep well tonight," he concluded.

A resignation letter from Lamour would make him the second of Infantino's staff members to walk out on the FIFA president in the space of 24 hours after Codeiro.