FIFA President Gianni Infantino quietly started negotiations with venture investor Joshua Kushner last year about selling a stake in the organization’s media and commercial division. The talks, which predated any public announcement by roughly a year, have now evolved into one of the most contentious proposals in global sports history.

The result of those back-channel conversations is the FIFA Forward Enterprise, or FFE, a new commercial entity designed to bundle FIFA’s most lucrative revenue streams, including media rights, sponsorships, and ticketing for marquee events like the World Cup. FIFA proposed the entity to its 211 member associations around July 18, with a formal announcement following on July 28. The target valuation: approximately $20 billion.

The deal structure and who’s involved

FIFA plans to retain majority control of the FFE while offering a minority stake of up to 21% to outside investors. The initial fundraising goal sits at $4.2 billion, with proceeds earmarked for expanded development programs across FIFA’s member associations.

Thrive Eternal, a venture led by Joshua Kushner, is positioned as the lead investor spearheading the consortium. J.P. Morgan was brought in earlier in 2026 to advise on the structural framework for the entity.

These conversations between Infantino and Kushner reportedly began in 2025. Joshua Kushner is the brother of Jared Kushner and the founder of Thrive Capital. The political connections haven’t gone unnoticed by critics, who see the involvement of figures linked to the previous US administration as adding an uncomfortable dimension to an already controversial deal.

The opposition is loud

UEFA has emerged as the most vocal opponent of the FFE proposal, pushing for emergency meetings and raising fundamental questions about whether commercializing FIFA’s governance structure undermines the sport itself.

Infantino’s counter-argument is that the $4.2 billion raised would flow back to FIFA’s 211 member associations, many of which operate in developing nations with limited football infrastructure.

The crypto angle that keeps surfacing

No active crypto tokens are directly tied to the FFE stake sale. FIFA previously partnered with Algorand in 2022, a blockchain platform that served as the organization’s official sponsor. Infantino himself discussed the possibility of a FIFA token or coin as recently as February 2026.

Any move toward tokenized FFE equity would need to navigate securities frameworks in multiple jurisdictions, making it a years-long process even if the intent exists today.

What investors should actually watch

The immediate question is whether the FFE proposal survives the political opposition. UEFA carries enormous weight within FIFA’s governance structure, and European federations contribute a disproportionate share of football’s commercial revenue.

If the deal goes through at the proposed terms, it would represent the largest private stake sale in the history of international sports governance.