Infantino's FIFA future in jeopardy after private equity gamble backfires

Aug 1 : FIFA president Gianni Infantino, hitherto untouchable at the helm of soccer's global governing body, suffered a crushing blow on Friday when his bold reach for private equity riches was brought to an end in the face of a ferocious backlash.A FIFA statement, attributed to Infantino, conceded that the proposal to create a commercial entity to run the World Cup and other tournaments, 20 per cent of which would be sold to private investors, was divisive and dead in the water.The concession ended three days of civil war in the football world which peaked when Europe's UEFA, the richest and most influential of soccer's six regional confederations, announced a boycott of all FIFA events until the proposal was ditched.The plan was Infantino's baby and its demise less than two weeks after t