UEFA is preparing a criminal complaint in Switzerland against FIFA President Gianni Infantino over a secret plan to put some of world football’s most valuable commercial rights into a new company.

As part of its preparations, European football’s governing body has asked a US federal court for access to documents and testimony held by two FIFA entities in Florida. The complaint could also target other FIFA officials and advisers.

UEFA alleges that Infantino spent more than a year developing the plan with a small group of advisers and investors, without consulting the FIFA Council, regional confederations or the organization’s 211 member associations.The proposal would have put the business of selling broadcasting, sponsorship and other commercial rights for FIFA’s biggest tournaments into a new subsidiary called FIFA Forward Enterprise.

Investors would have paid $4.2bn for a stake in the company, valuing it at about $20bn. UEFA argues that this significantly undervalued FIFA’s commercial rights and says the proposed deal was neither put to an open auction nor independently valued.

The plan triggered strong opposition across world football. UEFA’s 55 member associations unanimously threatened to boycott FIFA competitions, including the World Cup, unless it was withdrawn. The Asian Football Confederation and CONCACAF later backed that position.

FIFA abandoned the proposal on 1 August. UEFA and other interested parties are now preparing claims in Switzerland against Infantino for alleged criminal mismanagement.

(Reuters, lud)