Donald Trump Peace Prize continues to tear FIFA in two

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FT Desk

Gianni Infantino has courted controversy more than any other FIFA President over the past year alone and the fallout from some of his actions continues to be felt.

His failed FIFA Forward Enterprise proposal, which would have seen private investors take partial control of the World Cup, was abandoned after just a few days due to the fierce criticism he received over it.

UEFA even threatened to boycott future World Cup tournaments if the proposals went ahead and they aren't stopping there, as the governing body of European football is considering taking legal action against Infantino, FIFA, and the private equity firm involved over the plans.

There was, of course, FIFA's intervention on behalf of the USMNT to overturn Folarin Balogun's suspension during the World Cup after Donald Trump personally contacted Infantino.

However, the most egregious act from Infantino, in a world politics sense. was his decision to award Trump the inaugural 'FIFA Peace Prize'.

It was viewed by many as a way simply to stroke Trump's ego as the president of one of the World Cup host nations rather than an award with true gravitas, while he was reportedly unhappy at not receiving the Nobel Peace Prize.

After receiving the award, Trump ordered military action in Venezuela and Nigeria, among others, and instigated a war in the Middle East with Iran.

Infantino was asked months later by Sky News if Trump was a destabilising force in the world, and he responded:

"If we speak about the peace prize and ask ‘what is the main responsibility of a leader?’

"I think, for me, it means he must protect first his country and its people.

"If you manage to save lives, to protect your people and other people around the world, well, you deserve respect.

"We gave him the peace prize because he was instrumental in resolving conflicts and saving thousands of lives and to me, nothing is more important than stopping killing."

Norway's protests

The Norwegian football federation wasn't having it, though, and made an official complaint to FIFA's ethics committee to dispute the award's existence, as it has nothing to do with football.

NFF president Lisa Klaveness told reporters: “We want to see it abolished. We don’t think it’s part of FIFA’s mandate to give such a prize. We have a Nobel Institute that does that job independently already. This peace prize given at the [World Cup] draw in Washington was a breach of FIFA’s own statutes of political neutrality and there was a lack of legal process within FIFA.

“It’s important for FIFA’s federations, confederations and also FIFA itself to try to avoid situations where this arm’s-length distance to state leaders is challenged. And these prizes will typically be very political if you don’t have really good instruments and experiments and experience to make this independent and to have a jury and criteria. That is full-time work. It’s so sensitive.

“From a resource angle, from a mandate angle, and most importantly from a governance angle, it should be avoided in the future.”

Months later, as the NFF sought an update on their official complaint, they were denied it by Martin Ngoga, the chair of FIFA's ethics committee, as they are not a "party" involved in the complaint.

His letter to the NFF states:

“Only individuals who are the subject of proceedings are considered ‘parties’ to such proceedings. As a result, and in light of the confidential nature of ethics proceedings, we are not in a position to provide updates on the existence or status of any proceedings.

“Decisions regarding the publication of outcomes . . . are assessed on a case-by-case basis, taking into account the applicable regulatory framework.”

FIFA infighting

There was reportedly internal discomfort within FIFA over the decision to give Trump the Peace Prize award. The Guardian reported in January that mid-level and senior FIFA officials were uncomfortable with the award, with a growing sense of embarrassment inside the organisation.

There were also concerns about how the prize was created and awarded. Reports suggested that the project was developed by a very small group around Infantino, while critics questioned whether the decision was compatible with FIFA's political neutrality.

As for the failed FFE plans, two senior figures within FIFA left the organisation over the plans.

Kevin Lamour, FIFA’s chief operating officer, left after publicly criticising the proposal and raising concerns about transparency.

Carlos Cordeiro, a senior adviser to FIFA and former president of the US Soccer Federation, also resigned.