UEFA files legal request in US court to obtain documents, threatening criminal proceedings against FIFA President Infantino

UEFA has taken legal steps to potentially launch criminal proceedings against FIFA President Gianni Infantino in Switzerland, following his abandoned plan to sell a stake in FIFA's commercial operations.

In a legal document filed in the United States District Court and obtained by The Athletic, European football's governing body accuses Infantino of "promoting" a "fraudulently off-market price for his own benefit" when proposing to sell a stake in FIFA's commercial and event operations to Thrive Eternal, a U.S. investment fund led by Joshua Kushner.

Key Allegations

• FIFA sought to sell a 20% stake in a new entity called FIFA Forward Enterprises (FFE) to Thrive Eternal for $4.2 billion (£3.1 billion).
• The plan was scrapped after widespread backlash that continues to threaten Infantino's position.
• UEFA's lawyers describe the valuation as "absurdly low" and state it was not the product of an open, competitive auction, nor tested by any independent valuer.

"The valuation work exchanged with Thrive, and any internal Thrive analyses of FIFA’s enterprise value, are directly probative of whether the $4.2 billion price reflected an arm’s-length valuation of FIFA’s commercial rights or, as the public record indicates, a fraudulently off-market price promoted by Infantino for his own benefit."

Legal Targets

Identical legal filings have been lodged against:

• Thrive Eternal and Joshua Kushner (brother of Jared Kushner, Donald Trump's son-in-law)
• JPMorgan in New York City
• Bann Ventures and its CEO Greg Maffei in Colorado

JPMorgan and Bann Ventures were named by FIFA in its July 28 announcement as partners on the FFE project.

Criminal Mismanagement Allegations

UEFA's legal threat extends beyond Infantino to "other FIFA officials for criminal mismanagement under Article 158 of the Swiss Criminal Code."

The filing warns that if Infantino is found guilty of such an offense in Switzerland with intent to secure unlawful gain, he could face:

• A custodial sentence of up to five years
• Or a monetary penalty

"There is jurisdiction to prosecute such criminal mismanagement in Switzerland where, as here, the conduct occurred, was omitted, or took effect. FIFA is a Swiss association headquartered in Zurich; the FFE proposal was developed and directed by Infantino from FIFA’s Zurich headquarters; and the financial loss arising from the FFE proposal is a loss to a Swiss association measured on FIFA’s Swiss-audited accounts."

Document Requests

From Thrive and Kushner, UEFA has requested disclosure of documents and communications related to:

• The origination and development of the FFE proposal
• Communications with Gianni Infantino and Greg Maffei

FIFA and Thrive Eternal have been approached for comment.

This article was written by Dan Sheldon. Updated August 28, 2026.