The British news agency (PA Media) learned that confidential documents related to the highly controversial plan of Swiss Gianni Infantino, President of the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA), which aims to involve private investors in the World Cup tournament, will be made available to members of the Federation Council for review.
Infantino had sought to establish a company under the name “FIFA Forward Enterprise” with the aim of managing the commercial interests of the World Cup and other FIFA competitions, with private investors owning a minority stake in it. It was decided to abandon this plan last August, after three continental federations rejected it, and the European Football Association (UEFA) threatened to boycott FIFA competitions.
In a letter sent by UEFA on behalf of the European members of the FIFA Council dated October 19, a set of questions were asked about the FIFA Forward Enterprise company, along with other inquiries related to Infantino’s presidency, with a request to provide answers by yesterday (Monday).
Information obtained by PA Media indicates that FIFA Secretary General Matthias Grafström addressed all members of the Council on Monday, calling on them to review essential documents related to the FIFA Forward Enterprise proposal.
Council members, including FIFA vice-presidents, such as Slovenian Aleksandar Ceferin, president of UEFA, were invited to register their desire within the next two weeks if they wanted to view these documents in person, and according to specific conditions, at FIFA’s headquarters in the Swiss city of Zurich.
“BA Media” explained that these conditions were set in order to comply with FIFA’s confidentiality requirements. At the present time, it appears that the documents that will be made available for viewing are limited only to what concerns the “Viva Forward Enterprise” company. Although the letter, dated October 19, also included a request for clarification regarding the disciplinary case of American player Folarin Balogun in the 2026 World Cup and other issues, council members are expected to receive a more comprehensive response at a later time.
FIFA considered the two-week deadline set by UEFA to respond to the 42 points contained in the letter unrealistic or implementable.
Meanwhile, FIFA's focus is currently on organizing the first edition of the U-15 World Cup in Azerbaijan, with the participation of 189 countries and 3,000 players. The Federation is also preparing to hold an extraordinary Congress on November 23, during which the host countries for the Women’s World Cup for the years 2031 and 2035 will be determined.
It is estimated that the legal measures taken by UEFA in the United States, through which it sought to disclose documents related to the “football investment project,” imposed certain legal restrictions.
The letter included inquiries about the decision to grant Thrive Capital the exclusive right to lead the group of private investors in this project.
It should be noted that Thrive Capital was founded by Joshua Kushner, brother-in-law of US President Donald Trump. The letter also demanded clarification regarding the timetable for developing the plan, the reasons for setting the company’s value at $20 billion, why FIFA saw the need to seek private investments despite having strong cash reserves, and whether Gianni Infantino would achieve personal gains from this plan.
Council members attended a meeting of the FIFA Council on October 15, and posed direct inquiries to Infantino. Debbie Hewitt, President of the English Football Association and Vice-President of FIFA, who is one of the Council members, stated after the meeting that Council members were asked to submit their inquiries in writing.
The FIFA Council is scheduled not to meet again before December 16, while UEFA has pledged to present a credible alternative candidate to compete with Infantino in the FIFA presidential elections scheduled for next March. The deadline for submitting nominations is November 18.
George Russell spoke “from his heart” on Monday, saying that 2026 was not his year, and congratulated his Mercedes teammate. Kimi Antonelli, after becoming the youngest champion in the history of Formula 1.
The British driver was relieved of his media obligations after the Mexican Grand Prix last Sunday, as team boss Toto Wolff said that the driver was “deeply disturbed” by how the race went for him.
Russell started well from the front row before his car suddenly slowed down. Which cost him several positions. He finished the race in 6th place; Wolff said that the team let him down.
He said on his Instagram account: “This season started exactly as I had hoped, but things quickly collapsed due to bad luck and poor performance. This was the first real season in my career where I had more bad days than good. Was that difficult to deal with? Very yes. Was it difficult for me to motivate myself week after week and keep my morale up? Yes, very. Do you feel confused sometimes? Often. “All I know is that I did my best, and that 2026 was not destined to be my year.”
Russell began the year as the most likely candidate to win the title, given that he has won the most races and has the most experience at Mercedes, while Antonelli (20 years old) was only in his second season.
Instead, the Italian driver, the first champion from his country in 73 years, won 9 races compared to Russell's 3, and clinched the title 4 rounds before the end of the season.
Russell said: “I would like to sincerely congratulate Kimi on an absolutely amazing season. You really deserve the title. Now, all I can promise now is that I will do my best during the remainder of this season, and until next season, to regain the level that I was able to provide during most of my career, and I hope with a little luck that things will return to normal.
Argentine Martin Demichelis hopes to present his credentials as a coach capable of rising to the level of major matches, when he leads German Leipzig against his former team, Manchester City, England, on Wednesday, in the European Champions League.
The former defender spent three seasons with City, during which he won the English Premier League title in the 2014 season, in addition to two titles in the League Cup competition.
Demichelis, who also won four German League titles as a player with Bayern Munich, hopes to achieve success in Saxony, as part of his rising coaching career that began with the reserve team of the Bavaria giant in 2021, before passing through the Argentine River Plate, the Mexican Monterrey, and the Spanish Mallorca, arriving this summer in Leipzig.
Leipzig beat City only once in 6 confrontations between them, but Demichelis is willing to take advantage of the shaky morale of Italian coach Enzo Maresca's team.
City lost two out of the last three matches, while the third was decided on penalty kicks, at a time when it faces the specter of possible sanctions, due to alleged violations of financial rules.
Demichelis (45 years old) was chosen in a controversial way by Jurgen Klopp, then the official in the Red Bull Group that owned the club, to take over the job during the summer.
In order to sign him, Leipzig fired beloved coach Uli Werner, who returned the club to the Champions League with a young team, and at the same time contributed to developing the talent of Ivorian player Yann Dumande, who moved this summer to Real Madrid in a big deal.
According to reports, Real paid 125 million euros ($140 million) to sign Diomande, just one year after he joined Leipzig for 20 million euros.
Demichelis arrived at Leipzig after a brief and disappointing period in Spain, which ended with Mallorca's relegation to the second division, but Klopp and the Leipzig management saw enough to convince them of his abilities, after he oversaw a noticeable improvement in the team's level.
After a faltering start with Leipzig, which included a loss to Italian Como 1-4 in the Champions League, then a humiliating defeat in the local league against Bayern Munich 1-6, the team achieved 3 consecutive victories.
Leipzig is currently only 3 points away from the lead in the German League, but it urgently needs to score points on the continent.
The team that reached the semi-finals of the Champions League in 2020 is ranked 29th among 36 teams, after winning only one match out of 3 it played in the tournament this season.
During his career, Demichelis benefited from working under the supervision of a number of prominent coaches, including: Dutchman Louis Van Gaal, Chilean Manuel Pellegrini, his compatriot Diego Simeone, and his legendary role model, the late Diego Maradona.
Leipzig's French defender, Maxime Esteve, said that Demichelis brought to the club a "competitive aura," adding to Agence France-Presse and other media on Monday: "Even in small matches during training, you can see that the coach does not want to lose."
He continued: “When he misses something, you can see that he feels a little angry. “You can notice that it has not been long since he retired from football.”
Esteve played under the leadership of another former Manchester City player, Vincent Kompany, during his time with Burnley in England, and he said that Demichelis reminds him of the Belgian coach who currently leads Bayern Munich.
He continued: “It is funny that they spend a long time in the gym. “They want to maintain their fitness because they have a great history in football.”
He added: “They participate in training matches, and you can see the extent of their competitive spirit. "They don't want to lose."
He concluded by saying: “They strive for perfection and want to address small details as quickly as possible.”
Esteve also has experience facing Manchester City's Norwegian top scorer, Erling Haaland, during his time playing in the Premier League.
He described Erling as “the best striker in the world,” adding: “He is very strong, excellent at playing with his head, and very fast. “He has all the ingredients that make him a phenomenon.”
He expected it to be “a difficult match, but when you want to improve in football, you have to face the best competitors.” “And you want to give your best in this type of match.”
