NFF, Other FIFA Member Associations May Receive $20m Each Under New Funding Proposal

ZURICH — The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) and 210 other FIFA member associations could each receive up to $20 million under a new football development funding proposal unveiled by FIFA.

The proposal, announced on Tuesday, is designed to significantly increase investment in football development worldwide through an expanded FIFA Forward Programme and a new FIFA Fast Forward Programme (FFFP).

If approved, each member association would be eligible for an optional one off $20 million grant for special development projects under the FFFP. In addition, regular FIFA Forward funding would rise from the current $8 million to $20 million per association for the 2027 to 2030 cycle.

Under the proposal, the allocation would further increase to $22 million for the 2031 to 2034 cycle and $24 million between 2035 and 2038.

FIFA said the increased funding would support the development of football infrastructure, coaching programmes, national teams, grassroots football, competitions and women’s football across its member associations.

To finance the initiative, FIFA plans to establish a new subsidiary, FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE), which will oversee its commercial and event operations while raising up to $4.2 billion from carefully selected minority investors.

The world football governing body stressed that it would retain full control over football governance, competitions, the international match calendar and all regulatory and sporting decisions.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino said the proposal is aimed at ensuring that football’s commercial growth benefits every member association, regardless of size or financial strength.

According to him, every FIFA member should have the opportunity to access funding to determine its own development path, describing the initiative as a step towards the democratisation of football worldwide.

FIFA said the proposal remains subject to approval by a majority of its member associations and the FIFA Council in line with the organisation’s governance procedures.

If adopted, the initiative would increase FIFA’s football development commitment to more than $10 billion over the next four years, making it the largest investment programme of its kind by any global sports organisation.