The Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) has issued a statement after various football associations globally and fans had an uproar after stories emerged of the proposed establishment of FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE).

The association stated that it acknowledges and respects feedback and concern aired in public, reaffirms its commitment to an open and democratic consultation, and claims that erroneous reporting in the media disrupted planned consultation process.

Through the statement, FIFA claims it has respected the feedback aired in public and reaffirmed its 'commitment to an open and democratic consultation'. 

The footballing body did categorically mention that its planned consultation process was disrupted by incorrect media reports.

It stated how it will proceed with this consultation process to ensure that each MA (member association) has the ability to express its vote based on facts. 

FFE has been proposed solely to ensure that all FIFA Member Associations (MAs) have the opportunity to take meaningful ownership of the commercial opportunity of football in their respective countries, and that this does not come at the cost of either the spirit or the governance of FIFA or football itself. 

The statement added, "Nobody is selling football. This is not something FIFA would ever entertain. Everyone has the right to express their opposition and to seek further clarification but no single entity can claim to represent all 211 MAs around the world. Each MA should be allowed to review the proposal and have a say in shaping their own future. These are the democratic principles of FIFA."

It clarified the proposal:

• FFE would move FIFA’s commercial and operational event delivery activities into a subsidiary organisation that FIFA would own and control permanently. 
• The commercial value created would be shared among all 211 MAs, enabling each MA to make meaningful investments in football in their respective countries.
• Under the proposal, each MA would receive USD 20 million of FIFA Forward Development funding over the next four years (2027-2030), irrespective of its individual support. 
• This increased funding would come from the additional revenues generated by FFE through the more effective management of FIFA’s commercial operations, for the benefit of all MAs. 
• The FIFA Fast Forward Programme is a one-off development funding of an additional USD 20 million per MA – participation would be fully voluntary for all MAs should the FFE proposal proceed – and would be financed by external investment without ceding control or altering FIFA’s governance structure in any way. 

It added that without the support of the majority of MAs, FIFA's commercial activities would remain unchanged and FFE would not be established.