In their first pre-season fixture under Xabi Alonso this week, Chelsea supporters were treated to a 10-goal thriller as Joao Pedro scored a second-half hat-trick in a 6-4 win against Western Sydney Wanderers.
Spurs, meanwhile, have been more active on the pitch as they already have three pre-season fixtures under their belt, including a win over A-League champions Auckland FC and a draw against Sydney FC.
Today’s friendly between Chelsea and Tottenham is being played at the 83,500-seater Stadium Australia.
‘Having listened carefully to all the views, it has become clear that the project has created divisions of a nature that, regardless of the level of support, are no longer in the interest of the objective set out in the first place,’ Infantino said in a statement.
‘Our purpose has always been – and will always be – to unite and improve. As a result, this proposal will not proceed.
‘Moving forward, my intent is to bring all interested parties back together in the coming days and weeks in the spirit of shared interest in our game, and with the objective to continue growing football everywhere, particularly in those countries that mostly need our support.’
The brother of Donald Trump’s son-in-law was a potential investor in FIFA’s new plan (Getty)
Infantino had told all 211 of FIFA’s member associations that they would each receive up to $40 million (£29.6m) if they agreed to FIFA’s proposal by September 19.
CONCACAF, the 41-member federation for North America, Central America and the Caribbean, also rejected the proposal during a meeting this week.
The Asian Football Confederation, which has 47 members, also issued a statement saying it ‘stands in solidarity’ with UEFA and CONCACAF.
Why is FIFA's World Cup sell-off plan being opposed?
FIFA’s aim is to increase revenue from future World Cup and Club World Cup tournaments.
The plan is for FIFA to set up a new company called FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE) to deal with the commercial operations.
FIFA would retain the majority share in FFE, which means it would still oversee football governance, fixture calendars and decisions on the pitch.
However, the problem starts with FIFA trying to raise a further $4.2 billion (£3.6m) through private investment.
Although private investors would only have a minority stake in FFE, they would still expect to have a say in decisions related to the World Cup, which could then have an impact on players and supporters.
Private investors could also pressure FIFA into expanding the World Cup, or even hosting the tournament more frequently than every four years.
UEFA, CONCACAF and the AFC combined make up 143 of FIFA’s 211 member associations. A majority would have needed to vote in support of the plan for it to proceed.
‘Let me be clear: I had no involvement in this proposal, and I oppose it unequivocally,’ Cordeiro said in a statement.
‘It is a bad deal for FIFA’s Member Associations, a bad deal for football, and a bad deal for the long-term future of the game.
‘Football has been central to my life, and after more than 35 years in banking, I understand both the value of this asset and the consequences of giving part of it away. That is why this proposal should be rejected.’
