Trump Receives First-Ever FIFA Peace Prize Amid 2026 World Cup Preparations
FIFA bestowed its inaugural Peace Prize upon President Donald Trump on December 5, 2025, as he participated in the draw for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, a tournament co-hosted by the United States, Mexico, and Canada. The event, held at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., featured the participation of Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, signaling a collaborative effort to bring the world’s largest soccer tournament to North America.
The award comes as the Trump administration has actively sought to cultivate an image of the president as a global peacemaker. This effort included the renaming of the U.S. Institute of Peace to the Donald J. Trump Institute of Peace on December 3, a move lauded by supporters as recognizing his “dealmaking” abilities. A post shared by the State Department on X celebrated the renaming, stating it was done to “reflect the greatest dealmaker in our nation’s history.”
During the World Cup Draw ceremony, President Trump received the newly created peace prize from FIFA President Gianni Infantino. “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,” Infantino stated, adding his assurance of continued support from the global soccer community to “help you make peace and make the world prosper.”
However, the presentation of the award was not without prior controversy. Earlier in the year, the president faced accusations of retaining championship hardware from the inaugural FIFA Club World Cup, allegedly keeping both the trophy and a medal intended for the winning team, Chelsea. According to the president’s own account, FIFA offered him permanent possession of the trophy, stating, “We’re never going to pick it up, you can have it forever in the Oval Office.”
Beyond the trophy incident, concerns have been raised regarding the implications of the Trump administration’s policies on the upcoming tournament. Human rights organizations have voiced apprehension about potential barriers to entry for international teams, staff, media, and fans due to existing foreign travel bans and immigration policies. In June, Minky Worden, director of global initiatives at Human Rights Watch, emphasized the need for FIFA to address the potential threat these policies pose to the tournament’s integrity.
A coalition of 90 civil society groups echoed these concerns in July, sending an open letter to FIFA urging the organization to press the U.S. government to guarantee the rights of all individuals seeking to attend the event. The letter specifically called on FIFA to advocate for the fundamental rights of both visitors and the immigrant communities within the host cities.
The awarding of the FIFA Peace Prize also arrives after President Trump repeatedly expressed his desire to receive the Nobel Peace Prize, a recognition that ultimately went to Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado in October. Andrew Giuliani, son of Rudy Giuliani and executive director of Trump’s White House Task Force on the 2026 World Cup, celebrated the president’s role in hosting the event, stating, “Is there any other president that can handle inviting the world in and being a better host than Donald J. Trump?”
