FIFA vs UEFA: Infantino Camp Accuses European Body of 'Smear Campaign'

Football's civil war just escalated. FIFA has formally accused UEFA of running a 'smear campaign' against president Gianni Infantino, with the row centring on a reported plan to sell off World Cup commercial assets.

The accusation, made in an official filing, marks one of the most public and hostile exchanges yet between the two governing bodies, who have spent years jostling for control of the global game's calendar, competitions and money. According to the reports, FIFA's complaint frames UEFA's criticism of the World Cup sell-off plan not as legitimate governance concern but as a coordinated attempt to damage Infantino personally.

Details of the sell-off plan itself remain sparse in what has been made public, but the underlying tension is not hard to read: UEFA, the most powerful of football's six continental confederations and long the base of resistance to Infantino's expansionist FIFA, appears to be pushing back hard against decisions being taken over World Cup revenue streams without, in its view, proper consultation.

This is not a new fight. Infantino and UEFA, particularly under Aleksander Ceferin, have clashed repeatedly over the expanded Club World Cup, calendar congestion, and who ultimately calls the shots in the sport's boardrooms. But accusing a fellow governing body of a 'smear campaign' in a formal filing is a significant escalation in language and stakes.

What happens next matters far beyond boardroom politics. Any dispute over how World Cup commercial rights are packaged and sold has direct implications for the finances that trickle down to leagues, clubs and national associations worldwide. Expect UEFA to respond, and expect this to run for weeks yet.