FIFA to Review Peace Prize Awarded to Trump

FIFA Council Meets in Zurich

FIFA said it will review the future of the FIFA Peace Prize, the award first presented to United States President Donald Trump last year. The decision was taken after a FIFA Council meeting in Zurich, Switzerland, on Thursday (15/10/2026) that lasted about three and a half hours.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino said the award's future will be examined by FIFA's Football Social Responsibility Committee. The committee is tasked with analyzing it, submitting a proposal, and a final decision will be taken at the next council meeting.

FIFA announced the award's creation in November 2025. The prize is given annually to individuals judged to have taken exceptional action for peace. In December 2025, Infantino presented the inaugural award to Trump at the World Cup draw event in Washington DC.

Born After Trump's Nobel Miss

The award's creation came weeks after the Norwegian Nobel Committee did not select Trump as the Nobel Peace Prize laureate in October 2025. Trump had openly claimed he deserved the Nobel.

FIFA's move drew widespread condemnation. An international human rights group filed a complaint with FIFA's ethics committee to investigate Infantino over an alleged breach of political neutrality. The Norwegian Football Federation also brought the matter to FIFA's ethics committee, and 50 members of the European Parliament called for a FIFA investigation.

Reports said Infantino did not inform the FIFA Council before creating the award, blindsiding many senior executives. The controversy was among the items discussed at the Zurich council meeting.

Infantino Apologizes, European Critics Unmoved

At the same meeting, Infantino apologized for the plan to sell a 20 percent stake in World Cup tournaments worth US$4.2 billion through the FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE) scheme, which was launched and quickly scrapped in July 2026. But the apology was deemed insufficient by several European football leaders.

English Football Association (FA) chair Debbie Hewitt, who is also a FIFA vice president, said Infantino had not answered written questions about the secretive plan and was not fit to lead FIFA if he failed to answer them. UEFA is said to be leading efforts to replace Infantino before or at the FIFA presidential election scheduled for next March, with a November 18 deadline for challenger nominations.

Infantino did not meet the media after the meeting at FIFA headquarters. Despite support from several confederations, his critics are determined to leave him increasingly isolated and curb his powers ahead of the election.