Former England Manager Sam Allardyce calls on UEFA to ‘stay strong’ and resist FIFA World Cup sell-off

Former England Manager Sam Allardyce calls on UEFA to ‘stay strong’ and resist FIFA World Cup sell-off

Sam Allardyce has called on Uefa to “stay strong” and resist Fifa’s World Cup sell-off plans after the European association announced a plot to boycott the next tournament. Speaking to GB News, the former England manager warned that selling part of the tournament to private equity would be “an absolute disaster” for football. Earlier today, Europe’s football association announced it would not participate in the upcoming 2030 World Cup should the plan go ahead. They are protesting plans from Fifa President Gianni Infantino that could see up to 20 per cent of a new commercial subsidiary sold to external investors, with the venture reportedly valued at around £20billion. TRENDING Stories Videos Your Say “The World Cup is funded and globally big enough to create as much money as it's needed to keep it within house,” Allardyce said. “Not to sell it off or franchise it off to private equity companies.” The former Premier League boss warned private investors would prioritise profits over the sport itself. “The damage that we might see done to the beautiful game by private equity companies getting involved is they just want to make money, as much money as they possibly can,” he said. Calling on European football's governing body to resist the proposals, Allardyce added: “Uefa just need to stay strong this time. They can't be bought.” He backed Uefa’s threat to boycott the World Cup if the plans proceed, describing it as “the right thing to do” despite the unprecedented consequences. “It would be the biggest thing we've seen for a long time in football, but the right thing to do,” the former Three Lions manager said. “If we don't all stick together and this goes through, it'll be an absolute disaster in my opinion. LATEST DEVELOPMENTS Gianni Infantino warned to ‘seriously backtrack’ to avoid football ‘civil war’ after UEFA World Cup Future of football World Cup plunged into chaos as Uefa announces plan to boycott tournament FIFA's £3.1bn World Cup plan face