UEFA’s threatened legal action against Infantino and FIFA: What we know
What UEFA’s legal letter to FIFA could mean for its president Gianni Infantino over botched plan for private investment in World Cup. FIFA’s plans to
What UEFA’s legal letter to FIFA could mean for its president Gianni Infantino over botched plan for private investment in World Cup. FIFA’s plans to sell minority stakes in World Cups and other events run by football’s global governing body may be at an end, but the backlash is not – and the threat of legal action remains on the table. The biggest opponent to FIFA’s plans, presented by its President Gianni Infantino, came from European football’s governing body, UEFA. Having 55 of the 211 FIFA members, and being the most lucrative league in the world, the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) was an opponent that even FIFA could not topple. The unanimous vote by UEFA to boycott FIFA, unless it dropped its proposals, was also rumoured to be accompanied by legal action. On Tuesday, UEFA confirmed to Al Jazeera that a document preservation letter had been sent to FIFA. Here is what we know and what that could mean for FIFA. What is a document preservation letter? Also known as a litigation hold letter or preservation of evidence letter, this type of letter serves to preserve all evidence relevant to a potential or ongoing lawsuit. It is a legal request and formally asks a person or organisation not to destroy, delete, alter, or lose any documents or evidence that may be relevant to a dispute or investigation.
Why has UEFA served FIFA with the legal letter? UEFA representatives told Al Jazeera on Tuesday that they would be making no further comment at this stage other than to confirm the issuance of the preservation letter to FIFA. They did, however, release a statement on Saturday declaring that they had lost confidence in Infantino, adding: “(This) must not be the end of the story. The proposal has gone. The task of rebuilding trust in FIFA has only just begun.” The statement was extensive and pulled no punches. Infantino was clearly the target, and the suggestion was that change needed to come. The legal letter that has been sent to FIFA has, according to The Associated Press news agency, named 18 FIFA executives in particular who must retain data, documents and electronic messages as potential evidence. Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger, now FIFA’s head of global football development, was reportedly among those names. The Frenchman said in a statement later on Tuesday that he was “not aware” of Infantino’s plan. Does this confirm UEFA will take legal action against FIFA? It seems likely that a contest of Infantino’s presidency is imminent. That may come from internal moves, with FIFA Secretary General Mattias Grafstrom reported on Tuesday to have sent staff an email stating: “Individuals, unstable moments and unfortunate episodes come and go”.
The BriefWire