Trump’s FIFA ‘Peace Prize’ Sparks Backlash and Questions of Cronyism at World Cup Draw

WASHINGTON — In a spectacle blending soccer pomp with presidential pageantry, President Donald J. Trump accepted FIFA’s newly minted Peace Prize on Friday evening at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, capping a glitzy 2026 World Cup draw ceremony that critics derided as less a global sporting milestone than a tailored tribute to the commander in chief. The award — unveiled mere weeks after the Nobel Committee overlooked Mr. Trump’s self-nominated bid — has ignited accusations of favoritism, with human rights advocates and even some FIFA insiders questioning the soccer body’s impartiality amid its high-stakes preparations for next summer’s tournament across the United States, Canada and Mexico.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino, a vocal Trump admirer who has lobbied for his Nobel candidacy, presented the gleaming trophy — a golden globe atop five splayed hands, emblazoned with “Donald J. Trump” in block letters — to thunderous applause from a crowd heavy on MAGA luminaries. “This is your prize — your Peace Prize!” Mr. Infantino gushed, lauding Mr. Trump’s “exceptional and extraordinary actions to promote peace and unity around the world” in an “incredible way.” Mr. Trump, beaming beside a gold medal and certificate, proclaimed: “The world is a safer place now… America is the hottest country anywhere in the world.”

The event, attended by Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, unfolded like a Trump rally with a soccer veneer. Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli opened with “Nessun Dorma,” a staple at Mr. Trump’s Mar-a-Lago galas, while the Village People belted “Y.M.C.A.,” Mr. Trump’s unofficial anthem. Draw assistants included Tom Brady, Wayne Gretzky and Shaquille O’Neal — American sports icons with loose Trump ties — as the trio of leaders, behind game-show podiums, pulled teams from crystal balls. A selfie with Mr. Infantino sealed the surreal tableau, beamed to 500 million global viewers.

Yet the prize — dubbed “FIFA Peace Prize: Football Unites the World” and announced in November — reeks of expediency, per four FIFA executives briefed on its genesis. No nominees, no judging panel, no transparency: Human Rights Watch’s queries went unanswered, while Mr. Infantino’s Instagram post days prior tipped: “Trump definitely deserved it.” The Nobel’s October snub — awarded to Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado — prompted the hasty invention, surprising FIFA’s board and vice presidents. Mr. Infantino, who visited Gaza’s “Peace Summit” in October and hosted Mr. Trump at the Club World Cup final (where he pocketed a gold medal), has deepened ties: a Trump Tower office sits largely vacant, per insiders.

Critics pounced. “A truly shameful development,” tweeted Craig Mokhiber, ex-U.N. official and FIFA Israel-suspension advocate, slamming Mr. Infantino’s “complicity in genocide” via inaction on Palestine. Football Supporters Europe decried it as “deeply troubling for football & FIFA.” The Guardian’s Marina Hyde called the draw “gaudy and gauche,” a “carnival of cringe” with Village People vibes eclipsing soccer. Even neutrals questioned FIFA’s neutrality: Why prop up a leader whose 19-country travel bans — potentially expanding — could bar fans from Iran or Haiti, key qualifiers? The State Department’s “FIFA Pass” visa fast-track remains vague, risking empty stands at MetLife’s final.

Mr. Trump, 79, milked the moment amid sagging polls: 38 percent approval per Gallup, independents at 25 percent, as tariffs bite and shutdowns loom. His base lapped it up — Truth Social ablaze with “Nobel snubbed, FIFA nailed it!” — but moderates recoiled. Late-night hosts pounced: Mr. Kimmel dubbed it “prom king at the rejects’ party”; Mr. Colbert: “Scrooge McDuck’s bath salts for the Nobel.”

The draw itself — 48 teams, 104 matches, June 11-July 19 — thrilled: USMNT opens vs. Paraguay in Seattle; Messi’s Argentina faces Jamaica in Miami; Mbappé’s France draws the Netherlands in Philadelphia. Yet Trump’s shadow loomed: Andrew Giuliani, son of Rudy, helms the White House task force, dubbing it “MAGA FIFA.” The Kennedy Center, apolitical bastion since 1971, now Trump’s fiefdom post-$250 million GOP-funded overhaul, hosted amid protests decrying its “MAGA makeover.”

Mr. Infantino’s Trump tilt — Oval Office visits, Gaza praise — secures 2026’s success: U.S. venues like SoFi Stadium, but bans could exclude 20 percent of fans from restricted nations. As Mr. Trump pocketed his medal like a Mar-a-Lago trinket, the irony bit: A “peace” prize for a term of Iran strikes (June 2025’s Natanz/Fordow raids, sparking Al Udeid retaliation) and Ukraine arm-twisting. Impeachment bids — Rep. Shri Thanedar’s seven articles (May 2025, tabled 344-79); Al Green’s war-powers push (June, rebuffed 344-79) — fizzle in GOP majorities.

For Mr. Trump, the prize burnishes a Nobel fixation — denied for Gaza “ceasefire” brokering amid 40,000 Palestinian deaths. Yet as 2026 nears — USMNT’s Group D: Paraguay, Poland, Peru — the tournament risks Trump’s taint: bans barring Iranian fans, tariffs jacking ticket prices (up 25 percent via corporate hikes). FIFA’s cronyism — no nominees, board blindsided — echoes Qatar 2022’s scandals, eroding trust as viewership projections dip 12 percent amid U.S. backlash.

In a second term of 38 percent approval and shutdown specters, Mr. Trump’s “hottest country” boast rings hollow. The prize, a gilt consolation, underscores a truth: When Nobel eludes, invent your own. As Mr. Kimmel quipped: “Prom king at the rejects’ party.” For soccer’s beautiful game, the ugly underbelly: When awards bend to autocrats, unity fractures. June’s whistle may blow, but the farce lingers.