A Peace Prize That Divides: FIFA honors Donald Trump

The World Cup Draw took place on December 5, 2025. The ceremony was held at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., and the group draw was highly anticipated. However, it was not the draw that attracted the most attention, but rather the President of the United States, and particularly, the FIFA Peace Prize he was awarded.

A new FIFA Peace Prize

The FIFA Peace Prize was established in November 2025. It is intended to honor individuals whose actions are characterized by FIFA as exceptional contributions to peace and unity, reflecting its campaign slogan “Football Unites the World.” It is an annual prize that was presented by FIFA President Gianni Infantino at the Final Draw for the FIFA World Cup 2026, before the actual draw took place.

The inaugural prize was awarded to President Donald Trump for his “exceptional and extraordinary” efforts to promote peace and unity, according to the FIFA President. He cited his involvement in ceasefire efforts and diplomatic engagement in several conflicts, even though his role in these efforts has been disputed by some of the countries involved.

After giving the US President a trophy, a medal, and a certificate, Infantino thanked him for helping to end wars and save lives. The FIFA President explicitly said, “This is what we want from a leader” and “You can always count, Mr. President, on my support” during his speech.

While FIFA presented the prize on behalf of more than five million football fans worldwide, how the winner was chosen remains unclear.

FIFA’s political neutrality under scrutiny

The critics, like Football Supporters Europe, argued the Prize “was not awarded on behalf of millions of fans around the world, as FIFA claims. It’s nothing more than an ego-stroking stunt.”

While FIFA defends a policy of neutrality, many people are concerned about the way this “political neutrality” is maintained. NGOs accuse Infantino of breaking the so-called political neutrality of the soccer organization through his ties with Trump. The Peace Prize was not his only show of support: he also backed the US president on many occasions on social media and attended several political meetings promoting the president. Infantino also left little doubt about his stance that Trump should win the Nobel Peace Prize, in an Instagram post saying the US President “definitely deserved” the prize. The award was ultimately given to Venezuela opposition leader María Corina Machado. In this context, giving him this new award was unsurprising.

Human Rights Watch also added in a news conference that the organization reached out to FIFA to better understand the process behind how the prize was decided. They pointed out the contradiction that his “appalling human rights record” certainly does not display “exceptional actions for peace and unity.”

On December 9, human rights group FairSquare said it filed a complaint with FIFA’s ethics committee, claiming the organization’s behavior was against the common interest of the global football community. Fairsquare, which promotes greater accountability in sports, stated that if Infantino acted unilaterally, it should be considered an abuse of power. They also pointed out a video posted by Infantino on Instagram on January 20. There, following Trump’s invitation to his inauguration, Infantino indicated his support for “President Trump’s political agenda.” At the end of the video, Infantino shared the following message: “Together, we will make not only America great again, but also the entire world.” With those documents, the NGO questioned the so-called neutrality of FIFA. For them, this prize sends a message, saying that world football’s governing body is aligning with the MAGA movement.

For now, it remains unclear whether the committee will take up the complaint or not. If it does, the committee can take disciplinary action, which would include a warning, a reprimand, and even a fine. It can also order compliance training and a ban on participation in football-related activities.

A symptom of deeper governance issues

FairSquare’s programme director said the complaint was about a lot more than Infantino’s support to Trump: “This is about how FIFA’s absurd governance structure has allowed Gianni Infantino to openly flout the organisation’s rules and act in ways that are both dangerous and directly contrary to the interests of the world’s most popular sport.” They told CNN sports the prize is “an example of serious misgovernance at FIFA and further proof the organization urgently needs to be reformed.”

Previously, FairSquare had already challenged FIFA over the human rights record of Saudi Arabia, the 2034 World Cup Host, and the influence of the kingdom’s oil company Aramco (highest-tier World Cup sponsor). In addition, it is not the only organization with a concern for FIFA’s governance structure: since the arrests of seven of its senior officials on corruption charges, FIFA is “arguably more poorly governed today than it was 10 years ago,” argued a joint statement signed by esteemed academics from different countries. Infantino, who replaced Sepp Blatter after promising to restore FIFA’s reputation and finances after the scandal, appeared close to other controversial people beyond Trump. To exemplify, he was awarded a Russian Order of Friendship medal by Putin in 2019.

Despite the fact that, after this episode of crisis, a reform process had taken place, it is considered to be a failure due to the existence of a “model of patronage” within FIFA, which “disincentivizes ethical conduct and precludes effective internal reform.” According to the whistleblower Bonita Mersiades, “the culture remains the same,” and “true reform demands more than new systems, it requires new values. We’re not there yet.”

In particular, FIFA’s current ethics investigators and judges are seen as less independent. The committee’s history with policy violations and human rights debates has attracted concerns that FIFA lacks the competency and discipline to address them. The FIFA Ethics Committee, for example, gave the go-ahead to Qatar’s mistreatment involving migrant workers and labor under temperatures going to 50 degrees Celsius during the last World Cup, which was seriously criticized.

Thus, this award can be understood not as an isolated decision, but as part of a broader pattern in FIFA’s governance culture. Despite past corruption scandals and repeated promises of reform, the organisation continues to raise concerns regarding transparency, political neutrality, and accountability. While many civil society actors and human rights organisations have called for genuine change, FIFA, under Gianni Infantino’s leadership, has shown little willingness to reform the organization. Neither FIFA nor its president has publicly responded to the controversy about the Peace Prize. However, the complaint filed by FairSquare may represent a turning point that will maybe force the organisation to confront long-standing questions about its governance and ethics.