FIFA is actively considering scrapping its Peace Prize, a move that could leave US President Donald Trump as the award's first and only recipient. The organisation has officially deferred the decision to its Football Social Responsibility Committee.
During a high-level FIFA Council meeting in Zurich, several council members heavily pressured FIFA President Gianni Infantino to abolish or radically alter the accolade following intense backlash. The award, which Infantino created in November 2025 and presented to Trump a month later at the 2026 World Cup draw, was never formally signed off on by the FIFA Council.
According to reports in international media, this lack of approval, combined with severe criticism that honouring a sitting political leader explicitly violated FIFA's strict rules on political neutrality, sparked the internal rebellion.
The Football Social Responsibility Committee has been tasked with conducting an exhaustive review and providing a formal proposal. A definitive ruling on whether the prize will be completely abolished or heavily modified, such as banning politicians and restricting it strictly to football figures, will be made at the next FIFA Council meeting in Doha, scheduled for December 16, 2026, according to Al Jazeera.
Confederation presidents from UEFA, AFC and CONCACAF have separately called for Infantino's resignation following the collapse of a plan to sell a stake in FIFA tournaments, and the same Zurich meeting also addressed that failed scheme alongside FIFA's financial reserves, disciplinary procedures and governance framework.
What is the FIFA Peace Prize?
Officially named the "FIFA Peace Prize - Football Unites the World", it was an annual accolade introduced by Infantino in November 2025. According to FIFA, the award was established to recognise individuals who have taken "exceptional and extraordinary actions for peace" and used their influence to unite people globally.
Why Trump received the award
Infantino presented the inaugural prize to Trump on December 5, 2025, during the 2026 World Cup Final Draw at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. FIFA and Infantino cited several reasons for honouring Trump, praising him as a leader who was "instrumental in resolving conflicts and saving lives." FIFA specifically pointed to Trump's role in brokering a peace treaty between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda, as well as his efforts to advance ceasefires in the Israel-Palestine conflict. With the United States co-hosting the 2026 World Cup alongside Canada and Mexico, Infantino sought to align the tournament's theme of global unity with Trump's political presence.
The controversy
The prize was conceived and announced just weeks after Trump was passed over for the October 2025 Nobel Peace Prize. Infantino, a close ally of Trump, had publicly campaigned that Trump deserved the Nobel Prize and created the FIFA equivalent shortly after Trump missed out on it.
Human rights organisations including Human Rights Watch and FairSquare condemned the prize as a political stunt. They accused Infantino of bypassing standard FIFA governance, inventing an award without an open selection process, and using it to "curry favor" with the US government to secure commercial and political backing for FIFA's upcoming tournaments.
