FIFA President Gianni Infantino attended the opening of the Under-20 Women’s World Cup in Poland on Saturday as he continues to face pressure following the collapse of his controversial plan to sell off World Cup profits.
Infantino was seen in the stands speaking with Polish Football Association President Cezary Kulesza as host nation Poland faced Argentina on the opening day of the tournament.
The FIFA president has largely stayed out of the spotlight in recent weeks after his proposal to sell off future World Cup revenue faced strong opposition from FIFA member associations and some of his own officials.
The European nations, a quarter of the 24-team field, backed down from a boycott threat last week, citing assurances from FIFA that the plan would not be revived.
Legal action over the original proposal continues, and Europe has taken a leading role in efforts to oust Infantino ahead of next year’s FIFA election.
In a court filing Thursday, FIFA accused UEFA of running a “smear campaign against FIFA and its leadership” as the European football body seeks discovery of evidence related to the FIFA Forward Enterprise plan.
Infantino infuriated football leaders worldwide in July, shortly after the World Cup ended, when his plan for a $20 billion subsidiary that would control FIFA’s commercial rights, including those to the World Cup, was revealed by The Times of London.
The spinoff was to be 20% owned by investors led by a New York fund created by Joshua Kushner. Its initial funding was to finance offers of $20 million to each of FIFA’s 211 member federations, which were given a mid-September deadline to accept.
The FIFA president dropped the proposal within four days.
UEFA had the support of the Asian Football Confederation and CONCACAF, the North and Central American and Caribbean football governing body. The plan also drew criticism from senior FIFA officials.
