'World Cup not a commercial asset': Ex-FIFA boss Blatter blasts investment plan

[p][b]"Football belongs to no individual and to ‌no institution. It belongs to the people,"[/b] ‌Blatter told Reuters.[/p][p][b]"If FIFA were transferred into a profit-oriented corporate structure, it would lose its soul,"[/b] ‌added Blatter, who was FIFA president ⁠for 17 years ‌until 2015.[/p][p]FIFA said on Tuesday it plans to create ​the subsidiary to run the World Cup and its other events, and ​will offer stakes of up to 20% in it to external investors.[/p][p]The move has provoked ⁠a furious ​response from European football authorities, including UEFA, which said FIFA was putting the game up for sale.[/p][p]Blatter said the World Cup should not ‌become an investment product for private equity with investors seeking returns.[/p][embed guid="0d8c5888-4068-4851-b7c4-feb996386b4c" url="https://x.com/SkySportsNews/status/2082405607156388128" social-type="twitter" /][p][b]"The FIFA World Cup is not a commercial asset that belongs to a handful of executives," [/b]he said. "It is part of the cultural heritage of world football."[/p][p][b]"FIFA is the guardian of the World Cup, not its owner."[/b][/p][p]Blatter said he was shocked ‌at the idea, adding he would never ​have considered it when he ran FIFA.[/p][p]Investors ‌pursuing influence and profits ran contrary to associations that follow the interests of their members, he said.[/p][p][b]"Modern football has survived for more than a century because it ⁠belongs to the ⁠people,"[/b] said Blatter. "That ‌principle should never change."[/p]