The 2026 FIFA World Cup is shaping up to be ‘America first’ and, above all, ‘business first’
One of Gianni Infantino’s greatest skills as president of the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) has been his ability to adapt to the host country of the World Cup. Many still remember his extended speech in November 2022 at the opening of the previous tournament in Qatar. Responding to widespread criticism of the host nation, particularly regarding its lack of tolerance and the working conditions of laborers on World Cup construction sites, the Swiss FIFA president declared in 2022, “Today I feel Arab. Today I feel African. Today I feel gay. Today I feel disabled. Today I feel a migrant worker,” prompting widespread ridicule.
On December 5 in Washington, during the draw for the next World Cup, to be held in the United States, Canada and Mexico from June 11 to June 27, 2026, there was no praise for living together. Infantino took a pragmatic approach, believing that, this time, such declarations would not appeal to his new host, Donald Trump.
For the US president, who is at war with migrants, who shows contempt for Africa and who does not hesitate to mock people with disabilities, the FIFA president broke new ground by organizing a grotesque “peace prize” ceremony, created for the occasion, in order to curry favor with the man who dreams of one day winning the Nobel Prize. “Mr. President (…) you definitely deserve the first FIFA Peace Prize for your action, for what you have obtained in your way, but you obtained it in an incredible way,” said the head of FIFA. The organization, in a press release, praised Trump’s “tireless efforts to bring people together in a spirit of peace.”
The world’s biggest sporting event is thus off to a start marked by political allegiance, momentarily forgetting FIFA’s statutory obligation of neutrality. The human rights organization FairSquare has referred the matter to FIFA’s ethics committee, arguing that by supporting Trump’s political agenda, Infantino threatens “the integrity and reputation of football and of FIFA itself.”
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