UEFA has launched legal efforts that could lead to criminal proceedings in Switzerland against FIFA and its president, Gianni Infantino, over a controversial plan to sell private investors stakes in the governing body's most valuable competitions.

The proposed restructuring, which has since been abandoned, would have placed the commercial rights to the men's and women's World Cups and the Club World Cup under a new entity, FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE).

According to documents reviewed by BBC Sport, UEFA has filed an application seeking access to evidence and documents that it says could be used in potential criminal proceedings against FIFA and Infantino in Switzerland.

UEFA alleges that Infantino played a central role in developing and advancing the investment proposal and claims the structure could have benefited the FIFA president and a group of potential investors at the expense of FIFA and its members.

The European governing body further alleges that the proposal was approved internally through an unusually accelerated process. It claims some FIFA officials and employees were given only a matter of hours to review and approve what UEFA describes as a multibillion-dollar transaction.

A key part of UEFA's challenge concerns the valuation of the assets that would have been transferred to the proposed subsidiary.

In its application, UEFA argues that the proposed $4.2bn investment represented an undervaluation of FIFA's commercial business, suggesting an enterprise value of roughly $20bn. The organisation says the figure was not established through a competitive sale process or independently assessed by an external valuation expert.

UEFA is now seeking access to relevant records through proceedings in Florida. The application relates to companies and operations connected to FIFA's preparations for the 2026 World Cup that are based in the state. UEFA says the material obtained could subsequently be used as part of potential criminal proceedings in Switzerland.

The organisation also claims that FIFA's 211 member associations, including UEFA's 55 members, could have suffered financial and reputational harm had the proposed transaction proceeded.

According to the application, UEFA is considering bringing criminal claims against Infantino and potentially other FIFA officials and advisers for alleged criminal mismanagement.

UEFA has also raised concerns over what it describes as a lack of consultation with FIFA's wider football community. The governing body says it and other confederations, as well as FIFA's member associations, were not informed about the proposal before it was publicly announced.

The application alleges that the plan had been developed privately for more than a year by Infantino and a small group of individuals before its public disclosure on 28 July 2026.

At the centre of the dispute is the proposed creation of FIFA Forward Enterprise, which would have consolidated commercial rights linked to some of football's biggest global tournaments.

UEFA's legal action marks a significant escalation in the dispute over FIFA's proposed commercial restructuring and could put further scrutiny on the governance and financial decision-making of world football's governing body.