In an interview Monday, FIFA President Gianni Infantino said President Donald Trump was deserving of his soccer organization's inaugural Peace Prize.
Infantino acknowledged there had been a "strong reaction" to awarding Trump the prize, particularly after the U.S.' capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and violence in Minneapolis.
"Whatever we can do to help peace in the world, we should be doing it, and for this reason, for some time we were thinking about [whether] we should do something to reward people who do something," Infantino said in an interview with Sky News.
"Objectively, he deserves it," Infantino said of Trump.
The FIFA President noted Nobel Peace Prize winner and Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado gave Trump her prize.
"It's not just Gianni Infantino who said it ... [there's] a Nobel Peace Prize winner who said this," Infantino said.
"He was instrumental in resolving conflicts and saving lives and saving thousands of lives," Infantino added.
Infantino said he disagreed with former FIFA President Sepp Blatter, who said international fans should not attend the 2026 World Cup due to Trump's immigration policies and safety issues.
"I think, in our divided world, in our aggressive world, we need occasions where people can come, can meet around the passion [for soccer]," Infantino said.
The United States is hosting the World Cup along with Canada and Mexico.
"For the fans, there's only one piece of advice: stay away from the USA!" Blatter wrote on X, Monday. "I think Mark Pieth is right to question this World Cup."
Pieth, a Swiss legal expert who previously advised FIFA during its corruption reform efforts, warned against traveling to the U.S. in an interview with the Swiss newspaper Der Bund earlier in the week.
"If we consider everything we've discussed, there's only one piece of advice for fans: Stay away from the USA!" Pieth said. "You'll see it better on TV anyway. And upon arrival, fans should expect that if they don't please the officials, they'll be put straight on the next flight home. If they're lucky."
Sam Barron ✉
Sam Barron has almost two decades of experience covering a wide range of topics including politics, crime and business.
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