UEFA accuses Infantino of criminal mismanagement over World Cup investment plan

UEFA has taken its war with Gianni Infantino to the courts of the United States. Legal papers filed by the European confederation accuse the FIFA president of criminal mismanagement over the plan to sell stakes in competitions to private investors, and seek access to evidence and testimony for a potential criminal case in Switzerland. The move marks a dramatic escalation in a conflict that has been consuming world football for months.

• UEFA's lawyers argue that Infantino's actions rise to the level of criminal mismanagement and describe a fraudulently off-market price promoted for his own benefit.
• The Fifa Forward Enterprise plan, revealed more than a month ago, collapsed within days amid fierce criticism from confederations, former players, politicians and fan groups.
• UEFA is seeking documents in the US from FIFA, venture capital firm Thrive Capital and former Formula 1 executive Greg Maffei.
• Infantino has received backing this week from the Saudi Arabian federation and continued a world tour to secure support.
• October's FIFA Council meeting and the March presidential election are shaping up as the next decisive battlegrounds.

What UEFA's court documents say about Infantino

The language used by UEFA's lawyers is scathing. They state that Infantino's actions described in the filings rise to the level of criminal mismanagement, and describe a fraudulently off-market price promoted by the president for his own benefit. The confederation argues that the scheme awarded the World Cup an absurdly low enterprise value, one that was neither the product of an open, competitive auction nor tested by any independent valuer.

The documents, which reference Infantino's cronies and co-conspirators and include a chapter on the enduring history of corruption among FIFA officials, request access to evidence and documents in the US for use in potential litigation in Switzerland against the president. UEFA claims the transaction inflicted direct and concrete injury on FIFA and all 211 of its member associations, and that it was conducted under a veil of secrecy.

On information and belief, Infantino's actions described herein rise to the level of criminal mismanagement.

Football's civil war: from boycott threats to a criminal case

The crisis erupted more than a month ago, when the Fifa Forward Enterprise plan was revealed before collapsing days later. Since then, those opposed to Infantino have ramped up the public pressure with a series of cutting statements from former players, politicians and fan groups. There was even the leaking of claims, labelled categorically untrue by Infantino, that a former partner was given a severance payment over the affair during his time at UEFA.

The week had actually started well for Infantino. On Thursday he received the qualified backing of the powerful Saudi Arabian Football Federation, which said it supports his continued efforts to restore unity at this time. UEFA's decision to drop its threat of boycotting FIFA competitions after receiving assurances there would be no repeat of the scheme was also seen as another victory for the president.

But UEFA then raised the stakes. News that it was preparing criminal legal proceedings was viewed as a dramatic escalation, and as evidence that the confederation is not backing down in its determination to oust Infantino. Meanwhile, FIFA officials insist they are focused on delivering the U20 Women's World Cup, which starts next week in Poland.

Infantino's world tour to shore up re-election support

Infantino defended the plan as a means of unlocking FIFA's commercial potential, although he later apologised for errors. Neither he nor FIFA have responded to this latest twist. The president, fresh from trips to the Dominican Republic and Paris last weekend, posted video of a visit to Vietnam described as wonderful, the latest stop on what increasingly resembles a world tour aimed at shoring up support.

Given that UEFA first warned of potential legal action almost a month ago, when it instructed FIFA to retain any relevant materials related to the plan, Infantino may well have anticipated this move. The question now is whether US courts will side with UEFA over its requests for disclosure of evidence.

Thrive Capital, Josh Kushner and the plan's key investor

UEFA is seeking information from three parties: FIFA itself, the venture capital firm Thrive Capital, earmarked as the lead investor in the plan along with its founder Josh Kushner, and former Formula 1 chief Greg Maffei, described as the key commercial adviser on the proposed deal. While the filings state that neither Kushner nor Maffei are anticipated defendants in any proceedings, UEFA's lawyers are seeking subpoenas for the production of documents and communications and for deposition testimony.

Kushner, the brother of US president Donald Trump's son-in-law, has yet to comment. Some legal experts believe he could successfully challenge and block such a subpoena by arguing that the details of the deal need to remain confidential to protect his business interests and future investments. Kushner has recently agreed a deal to buy the Los Angeles Lakers for a record £9.3 billion.

What are the real chances of a Swiss criminal case?

It is unclear how long this process could take, or whether UEFA will secure the evidence it needs to support its claim that the World Cup was deliberately undervalued at about £15 billion. Nor is it clear whether the confederation will ultimately follow through on its threat to lodge a criminal complaint in Switzerland. How confident UEFA would be of criminal charges being brought is also highly uncertain.

The precedent is not encouraging. In 2002, in echoes of the current disunity, several FIFA executive committee members filed a criminal complaint against then president Sepp Blatter with a Zurich court. The public prosecutor took no action, while Blatter denied wrongdoing. Last year, a long-running attempt by the Swiss Attorney General's Office to prosecute Blatter and former UEFA president Michel Platini ended with both men being fully cleared of corruption charges.

Leading sports lawyer Nick De Marco says UEFA has to show it has an arguable case for criminal proceedings to be brought against Infantino. If it can do that, it ought to be given disclosure of a lot of the documents. In his view, the likelihood of success in that disclosure application is high, but it will then be a question for the Swiss prosecutor to decide whether there is a case, a process that will take time. De Marco expects to see disclosure of very interesting documents and more light shone onto the plan.

The March election and the promise of a credible alternative

Perhaps aware of the challenges its legal action could face, UEFA has pledged to secure fundamental reform, restore proper limits on presidential authority and ensure that FIFA is once again governed as an institution rather than around one individual. It is also demanding a genuinely independent external review of the plan.

Given the support Infantino retains in South America, Africa and parts of Asia, and how he has survived everything UEFA has thrown at him in recent weeks, many still expect him to remain in power and seek re-election for a fourth term in the spring. UEFA has warned that, should he do so, it will join forces with its partner confederations to offer member associations a credible alternative committed to integrity, accountability, development and genuine institutional change.

UEFA vice-president Laura McAllister says there is clarity over the changes needed to modernise football governance and make it accountable to its most important stakeholders. She insists there are many credible candidates out there, but it has to be someone who can unite that standpoint and has the credentials, credibility and buy-in to really champion that agenda. She believes governance must be rooted in principles such as transparency, independence, critical challenge and due diligence, and admits the process will not be simple and change will not happen overnight.

In October, Infantino will finally come face to face with some of his opponents at what could be a highly charged FIFA Council meeting, the first since the rebellion over the plan. The following month, presidential candidates must be nominated. Then, in March, an election is scheduled that, if contested by Infantino, could prove pivotal to the future direction of football. Until then, the division and rancour that has engulfed the world's game in this remarkable drama of intrigue and power looks set to continue. Right now, reunification seems hard to imagine.