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Donald Trump has come to the defense of FIFA chief Gianni Infantino, following calls for him to step down as President of the world governing body.
Infantino recently announced plans to sell stakes in the World Cup, with 20% going to private investors - proposals that were widely condemned by the footballing world, with Europe’s governing body UEFA threatening to boycott should they go ahead.
Included in the plans was a further expansion of the World Cup, from 48 to 64 teams – prompting further backlash, with three continental federations, UEFA, the Asian Football Confederation, and CONCACAF writing an open letter to Infantino requesting his resignation.
The aforementioned governing bodies accused Infantino of “trust broken through deception” and criticized his failure to acknowledge that the plan should not have been launched unilaterally.
Trump has been a long-standing ally of Infantino, with the two striking up a close relationship before and during the recent 2026 World Cup, culminating in the pair appearing together at last month's World Cup final between Spain and Argentina, where they presented the players with their medals and the trophy.
Until Monday, Trump had not publicly spoken about the heightening pressure on Infantino, despite reports that the head of FIFA’s calls for support from the US leader were ignored.
Despite the head of the proposed investor group, Joshua Kushner, being the brother of Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, according to reports.
Addressing reporters at Camp David, Trump revealed that it would be a “terrible mistake” should Infantino be relieved of his duties as head of football’s world governing body.
This comes after Infantino’s long-term adviser, Carlos Cordeiro, stood down in protest, while legend Luis Figo called him “deceitful” in an explosive statement on X (formerly Twitter), which concluded with “He should go. Now,”
Trump had commended this summer's World Cup as "one of the all-time greatest sporting events in history," just months after he was awarded the inaugural 'FIFA Peace Prize'.
Addressing the ongoing issues with Infantino's presidency, Trump took to Truth Social to say: "FIFA would be making a terrible mistake if, for any reason, they even considered replacing President Gianni Infantino.
"He is fantastic, having just presided over the most successful World Cup, by four times, ever presented.
"If he is gone, it will never be as successful or profitable again! Thank you for your attention to this matter. President DJT"
A full timeline of Donald Trump with Gianni Infantino.
Infantino made his first visit to the White House on August 28, 2018. He brought gifts. A jersey. Yellow and red cards. He told Trump the red card could be used to 'kick out' whoever he wanted.
Trump loved it. He held the red card up to the press pack and grinned. He called Infantino 'a highly respected man'.
That was the start.
Infantino came back to Washington in September 2020 to talk World Cup logistics. While he was in town, he also dropped in on Attorney General William Barr to 'personally thank the US authorities for their work in the fight against corruption in football'.
Infantino visited Mar-a-Lago on January 17, two days before Trump's second inauguration. They talked about the Club World Cup and the 2026 World Cup.
At the pre-inauguration rally two days later, Trump told the crowd: "So I am going to be your President for the Olympics and for the World Cup. So Gianni, thank you for the World Cup."
Trump signed an executive order creating a White House task force on the World Cup. Infantino stood next to him.
During the signing, Trump said: "What happened is, they rigged the election, and I became president. So that was a good thing."
The clip went everywhere. Snopes confirmed the quote was real but noted it was unclear whether he meant 2020 or 2024.
Infantino went on an official Middle East tour with Trump instead of turning up to the start of the FIFA Congress on time.
He arrived late. UEFA delegates walked out.
European Parliament members later pointed to the incident as proof that Infantino had stopped even pretending to be politically neutral.
FIFA announced the creation of the FIFA Peace Prize. It had never existed before. There was no published criteria. No independent jury. No shortlist.
When asked at a business conference in Miami whether Trump would be the first recipient, Infantino said: "On the 5th of December, you will see."
The 2026 World Cup draw took place at the Kennedy Center in Washington. Infantino handed Trump the inaugural FIFA Peace Prize. Trophy, medal, certificate. The works.
Trump called it 'one of the great honours of my life'.
The Village People performed. Shaquille O'Neal helped with the draw.
Fifty members of the European Parliament later wrote to FIFA demanding an ethics investigation into the award. FairSquare, a human rights advocacy group, filed a formal ethics complaint. Infantino told Sky News that "objectively, he deserves it."
Infantino posted on Instagram confirming that Trump had 'reiterated' that Iran's national team was 'welcome to compete' at the World Cup in the United States despite the Middle East conflict.
The next day, Iran's sports minister said a squad would not be sent.
US striker Folarin Balogun got a red card against Bosnia and Herzegovina. Trump rang Infantino directly.
He later told reporters: "I asked for a review because I didn't think it was a foul. I didn't know what the hell a red card was."
FIFA reversed the one-game suspension. It was the first time a World Cup red card had not resulted in a suspension since 1962.
Infantino said the decision was made by 'independent judicial bodies'. A Trump adviser said the president had not asked for a specific outcome. Trump said: "I didn't tell him what to do. I can't tell him what to do. And I don't believe he made the decision."
UEFA said FIFA had 'crossed a red line'. Belgium said it was 'astonished'.
Trump later claimed full credit: "I'm the one that got them to do it."
FIFA reception at Trump Tower in New York, two days before the World Cup final.
Trump called the tournament 'the most successful sporting event maybe in the history of the world'.
Infantino called it 'the greatest human, social and cultural event that mankind has ever witnessed and seen'.
Trump said Infantino 'made yet another of his good decisions' about the Balogun reversal.
CNBC reported that Trump had received $15,000 in FIFA tickets from Infantino.
Spain beat Argentina 1-0 at MetLife Stadium. Trump presented the trophy alongside Infantino. Standard protocol for the president of the host nation, though not a moment either man seemed to mind.
Infantino proposed FIFA Forward Enterprise, a plan to sell stakes in the World Cup's commercial rights to private equity investors.
Bloomberg reported the idea came out of private conversations between Infantino and Joshua Kushner, Jared Kushner's brother. Thrive Capital, Joshua's venture capital firm, was expected to lead the investor group. J.P. Morgan was brought in to develop the proposal.
It lasted about a week.
UEFA, Concacaf, and the AFC revolted. Carlos Cordeiro, Infantino's top envoy to Trump and the president of US Soccer, resigned. UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham called Infantino the 'wrong man' to lead FIFA.
Senator Ron Wyden said the plan raised corruption concerns and called it one of 'dozens of shady deals by Trump's family and close associates to get rich from the presidency'.
The three confederations issued a joint letter saying trust had been 'broken through deception' and that Infantino had placed himself 'above the collective that entrusted him with authority'.
Preliminary discussions about breakaway competitions began.
Trump, asked at Camp David whether he had advance notice, said: "No, I never spoke to him."
Trump posted on Truth Social: "FIFA would be making a terrible mistake if, for any reason, they even considered replacing president Gianni Infantino. He is fantastic, having just presided over the most successful World Cup, by four times, ever presented. If he is gone, it will never be as successful or profitable again."
Infantino is up for re-election next year. UEFA, Concacaf, and the AFC are still talking about breakaway competitions. The relationship between the two men is now at the centre of a potential schism in world football.
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FIFA is pushing forward with its highly controversial plan to sell a significant minority stake in the World Cup commercial operations to private investors. The global soccer governing body released a sharp late-night statement from its headquarters in Switzerland to counter an intense international wave of criticism and rising threats of competition boycotts.
The organizational crisis stems from a newly revealed project to spin off FIFA's commercial operations into a twenty billion dollar subsidiary named FIFA Forward Enterprise, known as FFE. Under the proposal, private investors would take a twenty percent ownership stake. A New York investment firm created by Joshua Kushner, the brother of Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner, is positioned as the core investor.
In its public response, FIFA focused its frustration on the press, accusing media outlets of generating inaccurate coverage that harmed official communications. The governing body stated that it still intends to hold a democratic vote on the matter so member nations can evaluate the project themselves.
The proposed financial model has triggered an unprecedented rebellion across the global soccer landscape. All 55 European member nations within UEFA agreed to a total boycott of future World Cups following an urgent online meeting. The governing body for European soccer issued an explicit warning to leadership, stating, "UEFA and its national associations will not participate in FIFA competitions."
The European resistance quickly gained vital backing from CONCACAF, the confederation representing North America, Central America, and the Caribbean. While the 35 registered nations of CONCACAF did not explicitly threaten to pull out of upcoming tournaments, they formally rejected the proposal. Insiders note that this pushback reflects a broader drop in administrative confidence regarding current leadership.
To push the private investment structure through, a minimum of 106 member associations must vote in favor. With 90 FIFA members already publicly standing against the strategy, the opposition needs only 16 more nations to block the initiative completely. The widespread rejection occurs despite financial promises sent to the 211 global members, which offered to double basic funding from ten million dollars to twenty million dollars over the next four years if the deal passes.
Long-term projections distributed by soccer chiefs claimed member funding could reach 86 million dollars each by 2038.
Despite the heavy financial promises, continental leaders remain completely unmoved by the projected revenue increases. Expressing its obligation to protect the historic independence of the tournament, UEFA explained its position by stating, "Some things are simply too important to sell. The FIFA World Cup belongs to football. It always will. And so long as Europe has a voice, it will never be for sale."
In its defense, the global federation strongly rejected accusations that it is compromising the integrity of international tournaments for financial gain. The management claims the corporate restructuring is designed to give local associations direct commercial ownership without altering the traditional rulebooks of international sport.
The executive suite continues to advocate for the validation of the project prior to the mid-September deadline for member feedback. In its official early morning message, the organization clarified its boundaries, stating, "Nobody is selling football. This is not something FIFA would ever entertain."
Donald Trump has revealed the details of his call to FIFA president Gianni Infantino after the controversial suspension of a ban to USMNT player Folarin Balogun.
Balogun’s red card ban was suspended after FIFA intervention, freeing him up to face Belgium in Monday’s quarter final.
Trump also questioned the integrity of the referee of the game against Bosnia and Herzegovina, calling him ‘suspect’.
There has been widespread outrage after the rarely-used rule was brought in to ensure that Balogun could feature up front for the USA, with Belgium’s soccer federation set to appeal the decision and European governing body UEFA also speaking out against it.
Speaking at the White House, Trump said: “I saw the play, and I’m a person that loves sports...
“That wasn’t a foul. That wasn’t even an infraction.
“This referee, who is a little bit suspect if you check his past.
“He made a call that nobody could believe.
“He’s our best player, or one of our best players. And he gave him a red card. I didn’t know what that meant…”
He then confirmed: “Yes, I asked for a review by FIFA.”
Later in the comments, Trump revealed how much he knows about soccer, telling the gathered journalists: “I didn’t know what the hell a red card was. When I found out, I said, ‘You gotta be kidding!’”
The referee, Raphael Claus, sent off Balogun during the US team’s 2-0 win against Bosnia in the 64th minute.
Then, on Sunday, FIFA announced that the one-match ban would be suspended.
That decision attracted particular attention as Donald Trump had made a call to FIFA president Gianni Infantino asking him to rescind or suspend Balogun’s ban.
According to Article 27 of FIFA’s disciplinary code, the game ban will be suspended for one year.
FIFA’s statement said: “If Folarin Balogun commits another infringement of a similar nature and gravity during the probationary period, the suspension shall be revoked and the sanction enforced without prejudice to any additional sanction imposed for the new infringement.”
Afterwards, Trump thanked FIFA for making the call and ‘reversing a great injustice’.
So far, Donald Trump has not attended any games in this World Cup, spread between the US, Canada and Mexico, but he will reportedly attend the final and could even hand over the trophy.
After the decision to allow Balogun to play, Belgium manager Rudi Garcia said: “I didn’t know that at the World Cup the 5th of July is actually the first of April. It’s April Fools.
“We’re not defending the national team or the federation, we are defending football, integrity. It’s the first time in World Cup history that such a decision has been taken.”
The Belgian football governing body released a statement confirming it was ‘astonished’ by the rule application, as there is no recourse to appeal yellow cards - the second of which resulted in Balogun’s sending off.
After the World Cup’s co-hosts, the USA, lost 4-1 to Belgium last night, missing out on a place in the quarter-finals and being kicked out of the competition, soccer fans have begged the President to pull some strings and get their national team back in the game.
Since the country has been turfed out of the tournament, fans flocked to social media to ask Donald Trump to use his position of power to ask FIFA for another chance to prove themselves.
Fans have faith that a plea from Trump could work, as his request to review US top striker Folarin Balogun’s ban worked and got him back on the pitch.
The team’s top goal-scorer was set to miss out on the match against Belgium after receiving a red card in the US’ previous game against Bosnia and Herzegovina before Trump stepped in.
Unsurprisingly, soccer fans have begged the President to step in again and use his power to get the USA back into the global event of the year.
One soccer fan boldly claimed on social media: “The US can still win the World Cup if Donald Trump has the courage.”
Another person, although seemingly less convinced by Trump’s influence, said: “Do you think Trump will make another phone call to ask them to overturn Belgium’s win? I wouldn’t put it past him.”
A third added: “The officials were totally corrupt. Trump needs to call Gianni.”
Gianni Infantino took over as FIFA president promising to reform the organization following the major 2015 corruption scandal, but his tenure has since been dogged by a string of controversies and ethics questions.
He has faced multiple ethics investigations and controversies of his own, including a Swiss criminal probe into secret, undocumented meetings he held with the country's former Attorney General who was investigating football corruption at the time.
Unsurprisingly, Infantino faced intense criticism over alleged political interference after FIFA abruptly suspended a red-card ban for Balogun immediately following a phone call from Trump.
Despite the pleas from US soccer fans, it appears the co-hosts' World Cup campaign is over for good, regardless of any calls made to FIFA's top brass.
Even if the USA team did make it through the knock-out stages, they would have faced the rather strong Spanish team, and hopes of beating them would be even slimmer.
Donald Trump has unexpectedly weighed in on England's World Cup semi-final defeat, questioning one of Thomas Tuchel's tactical decisions after the Three Lions' dramatic loss to Argentina.
England looked on course to reach their first men's World Cup final since lifting the trophy in 1966 after taking the lead in the second half.
However, late goals from Enzo Fernández and Lautaro Martínez completed a turnaround for Argentina, who booked their place in the final against Spain.
In the aftermath of the defeat, Tuchel came under heavy criticism for making defensive substitutions after England went 1-0 up, with many pundits and supporters arguing the changes handed momentum to Argentina.
Despite the backlash, the Football Association has publicly backed the German coach, who is under contract until 2028.
Now, the US President has added his voice to the debate.
Speaking at a FIFA reception in New York on Friday, Trump singled out England captain Harry Kane while questioning why the team's approach became so defensive after taking the lead.
"You have a great player in England, who I played golf with," Trump said. "You know that, right? He is Harry, who's been fantastic."
Trump then appeared to criticise Tuchel's tactics, saying: "I think they perhaps made a mistake when they made him a defensive player."
Referring to England dropping deeper to protect their advantage, he added: "They took the lead, and they took their best player, and they put him on defence."
Although Trump admitted he wasn't an expert on football tactics, he suggested England should have continued to attack rather than sitting back.
"What do I know about soccer?" he said. "We got to be a little offensive, right?... Look, what do I know about coaching?"
Still, he admitted the tactical switch struck him as unusual, adding: "I thought that was a little unusual, but Harry is a great guy actually."
The comments come as the 2026 World Cup, jointly hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico, prepares to conclude with Argentina facing European champions Spain in the final.
Donald Trump became one of the biggest talking points after Spain's World Cup victory when he remained in the middle of the team's trophy celebrations, prompting widespread discussion across social media.
The president's role during the World Cup final was to present medals to both Argentina and the winners, Spain, before joining FIFA President Gianni Infantino in handing over the trophy following Spain's 1 to 0 victory.
After the trophy presentation, Infantino stepped away to allow the Spanish players to celebrate. Trump, however, stayed at the front of the group, leading many viewers to question whether he was intentionally remaining in the shot or simply unsure of the ceremony's protocol.
Footage of the celebration has since gone viral, with lip reader Nicola Hickling telling the Mirror what she believes Infantino said as he attempted to guide Trump away from the team.
According to Hickling, Infantino first said: "Don, come stand this side with me."
She said the FIFA president then added: "Don, this way. Come on. We gotta go."
Hickling claimed Trump ignored the initial instruction, possibly because of the loud atmosphere inside New York New Jersey Stadium. She also said Infantino made one final appeal, telling the president: "This is for them. We've given them the trophy, let's go."
Trump eventually stepped aside, allowing Spain to celebrate with the trophy.
Body language expert Mark Bowden also shared his assessment of the moment in comments provided to UNILAD via casino.ca.
"Trump lingers on the edge of the group just as the final glitter cannons go off for the celebration still shot that will be shown across the world," he said.
"By doing so, Trump manages to get a chance to remain in the final, iconic photograph."
FIFA later released its official celebration photograph, with Trump no longer visible in the image. Social media users quickly reacted to the incident, with one person writing: "Donald Trump photobombing Spain’s World Cup celebration is the single most predictable moment of 2026."
Some fans also compared the scene to the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup final, when Trump was accused of "photobombing" Chelsea's trophy celebrations.
The next FIFA World Cup will take place in 2030 and will be co-hosted by Morocco, Portugal and defending champions Spain as the tournament celebrates its 100th anniversary.
The competition is scheduled to run from June 8, 2030, to July 21, 2030, lasting 44 days. FIFA has also confirmed that three opening centenary matches will be played in Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay as a tribute to the first World Cup in 1930.
All six host nations, Morocco, Portugal, Spain, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay, will automatically qualify for the tournament.
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