Ex-FIFA chief Blatter blasts plan to sell stake in World Cup to investors

Sepp Blatter, FIFA chief for 17 years until 2015, has blasted new proposal that moves ‘people’s game’ further from fans.Published On 29 Jul 202629 Jul 2026Former FIFA ⁠President Sepp Blatter ⁠has slammed the football governing body’s plans to create a $20bn subsidiary to run the World ⁠Cup, saying the tournament was not a commercial asset that belonged to a few executives.“Football belongs to no individual and ⁠to no institution. It belongs to the people,” Blatter told the news agency Reuters on Wednesday.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4Indian Premier League’s business value skyrockets to $20bnlist 2 of 4World Cup: For India football, qualification is still just a distant dreamlist 3 of 4Five wickets, no runs: West Indies cricketer makes bowling historylist 4 of 4FIFA boss Gianni Infantino accuses World Cup critics of spreading hateend of list“If FIFA were transferred into a profit-oriented corporate structure, it would lose its soul,” added Blatter, who was FIFA president for 17 ‌years until 2015.FIFA said on Tuesday it plans to create the subsidiary to run the World Cup and its other events, and will offer stakes of up to 20 percent in it to external investors.The m...