MIAMI, July 29 — Jared Kushner’s private equity firm, Affinity Partners, manages more than $3 billion in assets — including a $2 billion investment from Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund — and is now making a play for global football governance with a proposed $20 billion fund to operate the FIFA World Cup and other tournaments. The figure that matters: $20 billion. That’s the size of the fund a consortium led by Affinity Partners reportedly proposed to FIFA in December 2024.
Kushner has not publicly commented on the proposal, and no deal has been confirmed. If it proceeds, he would become a central figure in the business of global football, a role likely to attract further scrutiny to his financial relationships in the Middle East.
The Numbers Behind Affinity Partners
By the numbers, Affinity Partners is a young but heavily capitalized firm. Founded in 2021 after Kushner left the White House, the Miami-based private equity shop oversees a portfolio that includes investments in technology, entertainment, and sports. The anchor investor is Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, which committed $2 billion — the single largest source of capital for the firm.
Kushner, born January 10, 1981, in Livingston, New Jersey, built his career in real estate. He led Kushner Companies as CEO from 2008 to 2017 and remains on its board of directors.
That family company, which owns and operates commercial and residential properties, was his primary business until he joined the Trump administration as Senior Adviser from 2017 to 2021.
From White House to Private Equity
His tenure in the White House included two high-profile initiatives. In 2020, Kushner helped negotiate the Abraham Accords, which normalized relations between Israel and several Arab nations, including the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. That same year, he oversaw the creation of the COVID-19 testing supply chain, a logistical operation that increased testing capacity during the pandemic.
After leaving government, Kushner returned to business with a clear focus on international capital. Affinity Partners launched in 2021 with offices in Miami and a mandate that stretched beyond traditional real estate into growth-stage companies and sports.
The $2 billion investment from Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund drew immediate attention — and scrutiny — given Kushner’s former role shaping U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East. Investors will note that the PIF has been an active dealmaker globally, backing ventures in entertainment, tourism, and sports, including the LIV Golf tour and ownership stakes in Premier League football clubs. The proposed FIFA fund fits that pattern.
The FIFA Proposal and What Comes Next
If the $20 billion proposal moves forward, Kushner would operate the FIFA World Cup and other tournaments under a commercial arrangement that could reshape how the sport’s governing body finances its events. The consortium he leads would effectively take over the revenue-generation arm of FIFA’s flagship competitions. Kushner has not commented on the reports, and FIFA has not confirmed any negotiations.
The bottom line: Kushner is betting big on sports as an asset class, leveraging Middle Eastern capital to enter a sector where state-backed sovereign wealth funds have been the dominant players. His family life remains in the background — he is married to Ivanka Trump, with whom he has three children — but the business story is what markets will watch.
Scrutiny of his financial ties to Saudi Arabia is unlikely to fade. The PIF investment has already drawn questions from ethics watchdogs and lawmakers, particularly given the proximity of Kushner’s White House service to the investment decision. The FIFA proposal adds a new layer of potential conflict-of-interest concerns, as international sports governance draws intense public and regulatory attention.
For now, the deal is unconfirmed. But the figure that matters — $20 billion — remains on the table.
Investors and sports executives alike will be watching for Kushner’s next move.
