The owner of the English club…the president of the Asian Federation supports the proposal to “privatize the World Championship”.

Indonesian Football Association president Erik Tohir announced his support for FIFA president Gianni Infantino’s controversial plan to sell a multibillion-dollar stake in World Cup commercial rights, defying growing global opposition.

Tohir, who also owns English First Division club Oxford United, confirmed in a statement to the network.Sky News“, the need to move forward with the creation of the $20 billion FIFA Forward Enterprise, given that it will provide the necessary funding to develop football in his country.

“Indonesian football has undergone a radical transformation in the past three years. It has improved significantly. The national team’s ranking has risen from 174 to 118 and we need funding to continue this development,” Tohir said.

Last year, Tohir signed an agreement with Infantino to establish a FIFA center in the capital Jakarta, a move he described at the time as “a historic day for the future of football in Southeast Asia and East Asia”.

The analysis shows that expanding the World Cup from 48 to 64 teams, an idea put forward by Infantino, could boost Indonesia’s chances of qualifying for the World Cup based on its current ranking.

In response to accusations that FIFA is handing over the jewels of the world’s most popular game to a few powerful investors, Indonesia’s federation president noted that several national federations have already taken similar business measures in their domestic leagues and tournaments.

Indonesia’s stance comes as there has been little to no popular support for Infantino since the project was unveiled at the weekend, with Czech federation president David Tronda among the few to back him before his comments sparked widespread criticism in his country’s domestic football.