London, Sepr.17 (SANA)Football Association (FA) chair Debbie Hewitt has called on FIFA President Gianni Infantino to release all documents related to his abandoned plan to sell a stake in a new commercial company managing World Cup and other tournament rights.

In a letter sent to Infantino and FIFA Secretary General Mattias Grafström, Hewitt, who is also a FIFA vice-president, requested that the FIFA Council receive a written explanation for the decision to suspend the one-match ban imposed on US forward Folarin Balogun during the World Cup.

Hewitt asked FIFA to make the documents available before the next FIFA Council meeting scheduled for Oct. 15, citing concerns over governance and the organisation’s internal culture.

Scrapped commercial proposal sparks controversy

The dispute centres on FIFA’s proposed FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE) initiative, which would have created a new company to manage commercial and ticketing rights for FIFA competitions, including the World Cup.

Under the proposal, a 21% stake in the company would have been sold to a private investment firm. The plan was later abandoned following opposition from several national football associations.

Hewitt called for an independent review into how the proposal was developed, who was involved and how the private investment process was handled.

European football governing body UEFA has also demanded the release of documents related to the proposal and has begun preparing legal action in US courts. FIFA rejected UEFA’s claims, accusing it of conducting a “smear campaign” against the organisation and its leadership.

Balogun case raises further questions

The FA also raised concerns over FIFA’s decision to suspend Balogun’s automatic one-match suspension, which allowed the US striker to play in a World Cup last-16 match against Belgium.

Balogun had received a straight red card during the United States’ 2-0 win over Bosnia-Herzegovina in the previous round. FIFA later suspended the ban for one year, citing regulations allowing disciplinary sanctions to be temporarily suspended, without providing further explanation.

The FA said it had concerns about possible political involvement in the decision. US President Donald Trump later confirmed that he had contacted Infantino requesting a review of the suspension.

Infantino faces pressure ahead of re-election bid

The controversy over FFE intensified after the proposal emerged shortly after the World Cup final, prompting criticism from UEFA, CONCACAF and the Asian Football Confederation, which accused FIFA leadership of damaging trust.

Several national associations, including England, Wales and Scotland, withdrew previous letters supporting Infantino’s re-election campaign.

However, Infantino continues to receive backing from several confederations, including those representing Africa, South America and Oceania.

Infantino, 56, is seeking a fourth term as FIFA president in elections scheduled for March, with potential challengers required to declare their candidacies by Nov. 18.