Joshua Kushner regrets backing Infantino's $4.2bn World Cup sell-off as criminal complaint looms

Joshua Kushner, founder and chief executive of venture capital firm Thrive Capital, has expressed regret over his involvement in FIFA president Gianni Infantino’s plan to sell off stakes in the World Cup to private investors — a scheme that collapsed within days of becoming public and has since triggered a potential criminal complaint against Infantino in Switzerland.

Kushner had held talks with Infantino about leading a $4.2bn (£3.1bn) investment in 20 per cent of a proposed new FIFA commercial subsidiary, FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE). The plan was abandoned almost immediately after it was revealed, following a fierce backlash that saw UEFA threaten to boycott the World Cup and other FIFA competitions. UEFA has since called off that boycott after receiving what it described as “assurances” that FIFA would not attempt to sell off stakes in its competitions again.

Speaking publicly for the first time since the controversy, Kushner defended the underlying intention behind FFE while acknowledging the damage the episode caused. “Money in football has historically been concentrated amongst a small group of countries,” he said in a statement. “The idea behind FFE was to direct more capital and equity equally amongst all 211 member countries, providing significantly more investment to underdeveloped nations to nurture local talent, support grassroots football, enhance the fan experience, and ultimately grow the global game everywhere.”

He added: “While we stand behind the motivations of FFE, we failed to appreciate the political dynamics of global football, and the lengths some would go to. Thrive has a long track record of being a partner to all constituents. Had we known what this would devolve into, we would not have gotten involved.”

Before the plan was scrapped, FIFA had stated that Thrive “is expected to lead the proposed investor group for FFE” and claimed the funding distributed to each national association for the 2027–2030 cycle would have increased from £5.9m to £14.7m.

UEFA is now preparing to bring a criminal complaint against Infantino in Switzerland for “criminal mismanagement”. As part of that process, UEFA has asked a court in New York to approve subpoenas for testimony and documents from both Kushner and Thrive Capital.

Kushner — the brother of Jared Kushner, son-in-law of US President Donald Trump — remains active in sport despite the controversy, having recently agreed a record $12.5bn (£9.3bn) deal to purchase NBA franchise the Los Angeles Lakers.