World football's governing body, FIFA, has scrapped plans to sell a stake in the World Cup to private investors after a widespread backlash.

FIFA president Gianni Infantino said in a statement: "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."

The plan was to raise $US4.2 billion ($5.9 billion) by selling about a 20 per cent stake in a new unit, valuing it at $US20 billion.

European football's governing body, UEFA, had led the widespread opposition to the proposal, accusing FIFA of putting the sport's "soul" up for sale.

On Thursday, UEFA's 55 member nations voted unanimously to boycott all FIFA tournaments, less than two weeks after Spain were crowned world champions.

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