Czech FA breaks ranks to back Gianni Infantino’s World Cup sell-off plan

The president of the Czech Football Association has backed Gianni Infantino ’s controversial plan to sell stakes in the World Cup’s commercial rights. After details of Infantino’s plan came to fruition on Tuesday , David Trunda told Sky News he can see the “positive impact” of the Fifa president’s plan. For Uefa , European football’s governing body, Trunda’s comments are an early blow to their hopes of launching a member-wide boycott of Fifa competitions. In order for a boycott to take place, all 55 Uefa members would unanimously have to agree. A call to discuss the plans is scheduled for Thursday. "I can see the pragmatic benefits for Czech football from working in close co-operation with [FIFA president] Gianni Infantino and his team," Trunda told Sky. "Of course we need more details, but my personal point of view is that I can see the positive impact of FIFA's intentions. "I was elected a little more than a year ago, and for me personally all the projects I have experienced in cooperation with FIFA have been very positive for the development of European football." At this early stage, Trunda’s remarks are an outlier, with other high-profile football associations condemning the plans and lack of transparency. The Czech FA will discuss the proposals at an executive meeting on 11 August. Infantino’s plan promises windfalls of $40m for Fifa member associations – of which there are 211 – who sign up to the plan by 19 September. It gives members just 53 days to decide which direction they go down. In a letter to the member associations, seen by The Independent, Infantino has promised that national federations would benefit from an increase of its ‘Fifa Forward’ funding from around $8m to $20m for the upcoming four-year cycle between 2027 and 2031 if the new FFE subsidiary is created. Additionally, the letter states that a “one-off” payment of another $20m would be made available for member associations who vote for Infantino’s proposals on 19 September. In the letter, member associations are then warned that their funding for the 2027-2031 cycle would only stand at $10m if the vote does not pass, meaning they would miss out on $30m. Gianni Infantino’s controversial plans were revealed on Tuesday (Reuters) The member associations were also informed, via Fifa’s press release, that they could expect further increases in future cycles, rising to $24m by 2035 to 2038. Thrive Eternal, led Joshua Kushner , the brother of US president Donald Trump ’s son-in-law Jared Kushner , are set to lead the new investment, which Fifa said could raise $4.2bn. An English FA spokeswoman said: “We were completely unaware of this proposal and have no substantive details, including what the proposition actually is, and what conditions are attached. “Based on the limited information, we are deeply concerned about the lack of process and governance to get to this point, and the apparent substance and principles involved. “When the proposal is shared in the full and transparent way now promised by Fifa, we will make our views clear, and comment further.” Uefa, ran by president Aleksander Ceferin, who does not see eye to eye with Infantino, released a strongly-worded statement on Tuesday. "The soul and governance of football are not assets to trade - especially with zero transparency as to who gains financially,” it read. "None of us are the owners of football: it is not FIFA's to sell.”