Donald Trump has thrown his support behind FIFA president Gianni Infantino’s contentious push for another term, warning that world soccer’s governing body could face a major financial setback if it turns away from his longtime ally and supporter.
“FIFA would be making a terrible mistake if, for any reason, they even considered replacing President Gianni Infantino,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “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.”
Trump’s reference to “four times” appears to point to the audience figures for the 2026 World Cup, which reportedly more than doubled the television viewership recorded for the 2022 tournament in Qatar.
Still, even a public endorsement from Trump may not be enough to steady Infantino’s position. On Monday, UEFA, the Asian Football Confederation and CONCACAF — which oversees soccer across North America, Central America and the Caribbean — issued a joint statement accusing the FIFA chief of deception.
The three governing bodies alleged that Infantino damaged trust “through deception” over a now-scrapped plan that would have allowed private equity investors to buy stakes in the World Cup. Among those linked to the proposal was Joshua Kushner, the brother of Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law.
In their statement, the confederations also accused Infantino of putting himself “above the collective” and urged that his actions be examined through a fully independent review.
President Donald Trump is supporting Gianni Infantino’s re-election campaign, warning FIFA could suffer financially if it does not keep his friend and ally in charge for another four years
Trump has repeatedly praised Infantino over the success of the 2026 World Cup
Joshua Kushner was said to be among the potential investors in World Cup stakes
‘Football’s strength has always been its unity,’ the statement concluded. ‘We call for that unity to be honored now, for leadership that serves football, not seeks to command it.’
FIFA released a statement on Saturday criticizing a ‘concerted and ongoing effort’ to ‘undermine’ both the organisation and Infantino.
UEFA announced on Thursday that they will continue to boycott FIFA competitions if Infantino remains at the top of world football after his scandalous plans to sell $4.2 billion (£3.1billion) in World Cup stakes to private investors collapsed. Meanwhile, Norwegian Football Federation (NFF) president Lise Klaveness called for him to resign on Friday.
Mexico’s football federation broke ranks with CONCACAF to come out in support of Infantino, with Argentina, Qatar, Paraguay, Morocco and Egypt among those in favour of him remaining as FIFA president.
Infantino has also faced allegations this week that UEFA made a ‘departure payment’ to a female employee with whom he is alleged to have been in a relationship while general secretary of European football’s governing body.
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UEFA confirmed a payment was made, but FIFA labeled the allegation as ‘categorically untrue.’
The next FIFA presidential elections take place next March.
Infantino talks to Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, whose brother Joshua was a potential investor in FIFA’s now-abandoned plan to sell World Cup stakes to private equity groups
Prior to Trump’s Truth Social post, Infantino was said to be in talks with the White House on the best way to save his job, the New York Post reported.
As an insider told the Post: ‘He wanted to get online with [Secretary of State Marco Rubio] and talk about how soccer can be a form of soft power for America. But we all know that it is about job protection. It is not about anything else at this point.’
A second source described Infantino as feeling ‘isolated’ by the ‘avalanche’ of negativity surrounding his now-doomed plans. ‘He is looking for allies of note to publicly support him,’ they said.
The Daily Mail reached out to FIFA and the White House for comment but did not receive a response. Meanwhile on X, the Assistant Secretary of State for Global Public Affairs, Dylan Johnson, denied that a call would take place.
He posted: ‘There are no plans for [Marco Rubio] to speak with Infantino and there is no call this morning. [The New York Post] should check their sources or they could have just asked us.’
Infantino was reportedly seeking support from Secretary of State Marco Rubio (center)
On Tuesday, a FIFA spokesperson told Our News Outlet: ‘The FIFA President has not made any call to the US President, or any members of his administration, in recent days. It is pure fiction.’
Infantino’s alleged last-ditch attempt to save his presidency came after Trump brutally denied all knowledge of Infantino’s bold sell-off plan.
When asked ‘did Mr Infantino speak to you about his proposal to sell a stake in the World Cup?’ Trump brutally first replied: ‘Who?’
After the question was repeated, the president then added: ‘No, I didn’t speak to him.’
Trump’s reaction to Infantino in that Oval Office media session was a far cry from previous comments before and during the World Cup, in which he often gave a glowing review of the FIFA boss.
The Post also reported that Infantino repeatedly tried to call Trump amid the controversy, only to be met with a wall of silence from the president, who received FIFA’s inaugural peace prize last year.
