UEFA files for document disclosure ahead of possible Swiss criminal case against Infantino

UEFA has escalated its confrontation with FIFA by requesting the disclosure of documents in advance of potentially launching “criminal proceedings” against president Gianni Infantino in Switzerland over his abandoned World Cup sell-off plan.

In a legal document filed in the United States District Court, seen by The Athletic, European football’s governing body has accused FIFA’s president of “promoting” a “fraudulently off-market price for his own benefit” when proposing to sell a stake in world soccer’s governing body’s commercial and event operations to Thrive Eternal, a U.S. investment fund run by Joshua Kushner.

FIFA wanted to sell a fifth of the new entity, called FIFA Forward Enterprises (FFE), to the group for $4.2billion (£3.1bn) before the plans were scrapped after an overwhelming backlash that continues to threaten Infantino’s position.

'Absurdly low' valuation

UEFA’s lawyers say the valuation was “absurdly low”, nor was it “the product of an open, competitive auction”, and was “not 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,” the legal filing reads.

FIFA and Thrive Eternal have been approached for comment. Identical legal filings have been lodged against Thrive, Kushner — who is the brother of Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner — and JPMorgan in New York City, as well as Bann Ventures and Greg Maffei, its CEO, in Colorado. JPMorgan and Bann Ventures were set to work alongside FIFA on the FFE project and were named by FIFA in its release announcing the plans.

Threat of criminal mismanagement charges

In addition to Infantino, UEFA’s threat of legal action also extends to “other FIFA officials for criminal mismanagement under Article 158 of the Swiss Criminal Code, together with such further or alternative charges as the developed factual record may support”. It also states that if Infantino is proven of such a criminal offence in Switzerland, with the intention of securing an unlawful gain, he could be “liable to a custodial sentence not exceeding five years or to a monetary penalty.”

“There is jurisdiction to prosecute such criminal mismanagement in Switzerland where, here, the conduct occurred, was carried out, or took effect,” the legal filing states.

“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. On information and belief, Infantino’s actions described herein rise to the level of criminal mismanagement…”

From Thrive and Kushner, UEFA has requested the disclosure of “documents and communications” relating to “the origination and development of the FFE proposal, including communications with Gianni Infantino, Greg Maffei, and other FIFA officials and employees, advisors or intermediaries, from the earliest date on which the transaction was discussed through the date of production”.

They have also asked for “any valuation work performed by or shared with Thrive or Kushner in connection with the FFE proposal, including all iterations of the 'FIFA Forward Enterprise Member Materials' deck, all supporting valuation models, comparables analyses, and financial projections, and all internal Thrive analyses of FIFA’s enterprise value”. The requests also cover documents and communications regarding the terms on which Thrive or any affiliated entity was to invest, including term sheets, letters of intent, subscription documents, side letters and draft agreements, as well as any documents concerning anticipated rates of return, exit rights, governance rights or reserved matters.

Pressure mounts on Infantino's position

The launch and subsequent collapse of Infantino’s controversial plan over the span of just a few days last month has engulfed world football and has seen the FIFA president face repeated calls for him to resign. The 56-year-old announced his intention to stand in the presidential election in March ahead of what would be a third and final term, albeit before the FFE fallout, and previously claimed to have received more than 200 letters of support from member associations.

However, that number has now significantly dwindled, with UEFA, Concacaf and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) all calling for the Swiss-Italian to stand down. UEFA’s 55 member associations, as well as the European members of the FIFA Council, met ahead of the Champions League draw in Monaco on Thursday and afterwards again reiterated the need for world football to have “new leadership capable of rebuilding trust.”

“UEFA will therefore continue working with confederations, member associations and the wider football community — including fans, players, clubs, leagues and others — to shape the future of FIFA,” a UEFA statement read. “Should the current FIFA president nevertheless seek another mandate, UEFA will join forces with its partner confederations to ensure that member associations are offered a credible alternative — one committed to integrity, accountability, development and genuine institutional change.”

“FIFA has currently billions of dollars in reserves. This money belongs to the member associations,” it continued. “Together with other confederations, UEFA will jointly explore a responsible release of part of FIFA’s reserves for the benefit of the member associations — while at the same time ensuring that any proposal preserves FIFA’s financial stability. The question is therefore why the FIFA president believed he needed outside investors to expand development funding.”