UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin has said trust in world football remains damaged despite FIFA abandoning its controversial proposal to sell a stake in the commercial rights to the World Cup.

Speaking at the Portugal Football Summit on Wednesday, Ceferin addressed the issue publicly for the first time since FIFA president Gianni Infantino proposed an independent review of the governing body’s decision-making process.

Although Ceferin did not directly name FIFA or Infantino, his comments appeared to refer to the dispute that dominated football’s governing landscape following the 2026 World Cup.

“Trust in our sport rests on three pillars: unity, transparency, and governance that serves the many, not the few,” Ceferin said. He added that all three had recently been disregarded by people who had been entrusted with protecting them.

“The project that shattered the unity of world football may be abolished, but the trust it broke has not returned, and repairing it is our work now,” he said.

FIFA’s World Cup Investment Plan Sparked Opposition

The dispute centred on a FIFA proposal to sell a 20% stake in its commercial rights, including rights connected to the World Cup, to private investors.

The plan faced resistance from several major football confederations, including UEFA, the Asian Football Confederation and Concacaf.

UEFA’s 55 member associations had warned that they would not participate in FIFA competitions if the proposal went ahead. FIFA ultimately abandoned the plan in July following the widespread opposition.

Ceferin reiterated UEFA’s position at the Portugal summit, saying: “Football is not for sale.”

He said the message had been central to UEFA’s position for years and expressed confidence that it would continue to be supported within European football.

Infantino Proposes Possible Governance Changes

While FIFA’s investment proposal has been withdrawn, the dispute has shifted towards the way the organisation makes major decisions.

Infantino wrote to FIFA’s 211 member associations and members of the FIFA Council on Monday, outlining possible changes following the backlash over the investment proposal.

Among the ideas is a review of FIFA’s governance and the process through which major projects are considered.

Infantino has said the proposal for a review would be put before the FIFA Council rather than being introduced unilaterally. The Council is scheduled to meet again on October 15.

The development comes as FIFA faces questions over how major commercial and strategic decisions are presented to its membership and governing bodies.

Ceferin Says Withdrawal Has Not Restored Trust

For Ceferin, FIFA’s decision to abandon the investment proposal has not completely resolved the dispute.

The UEFA president argued that the damage to trust within international football cannot simply be reversed by withdrawing the project.

“The game will remain safe if those who govern it remember whom they govern it for,” Ceferin said.

His comments underline the continuing divide over governance and decision-making within world football’s governing structure.

The disagreement between UEFA and FIFA had escalated during the aftermath of the 2026 World Cup, with the proposed commercial investment plan becoming a major point of contention between football’s governing bodies.

With FIFA now considering possible governance reforms, attention will turn to the FIFA Council’s October 15 meeting and whether the proposed changes can address concerns raised by UEFA and other confederations.

For now, Ceferin’s remarks make clear that, despite the investment plan being abandoned, the debate over trust, transparency and governance in world football is far from over.