Is Fifa selling parts of the World Cup to private investors?

What the report says

Al Jazeera reported on July 29, 2026, that FIFA has announced plans to create a new subsidiary company to manage part of the World Cup business and make a 20% stake available to private investors. The report said the stake is valued at more than $4 billion, signalling a potentially major shift in how some commercial aspects of football’s biggest tournament could be structured.

According to Al Jazeera’s video report by Mohammad Saleh, discussions with a likely purchaser of the shares have included Thrive Eternal, an investment firm linked in the report to Jared Kushner’s brother. The available article text does not specify which part of the World Cup the new subsidiary would run, the stage of the talks, or whether any agreement has been finalized.

The development matters because the World Cup is FIFA’s flagship event and a central source of the organization’s global influence and revenue. Bringing private investors into an entity tied to the tournament could raise questions about governance, commercial priorities, transparency and control over future decisions.

As general context, FIFA has increasingly expanded and commercialized its major competitions, while private capital has become more active across global sport. However, based on the information provided by Al Jazeera, the key confirmed point is the planned subsidiary and proposed 20% investor stake; further details would be needed to assess the full implications.