President Donald Trump better savor his FIFA Peace Prize, because it’s the only one he’s going to get.
In a surprise to no one, Trump received FIFA’s made-up, not-to-be-taken-seriously-at-all token award that was created solely for the purpose of stroking the president’s considerable ego. He got a gaudy, gold trophy — the better to match the Oval Office! — a medal he immediately put on and a certificate to commemorate the embarrassing, err, momentous occasion.
“(This is) in recognition of his exceptional and extraordinary actions to promote peace and unity around the world,” FIFA President Gianni Infantino gushed ahead of the 2026 World Cup draw in Washington, D.C.
Which actions are those specifically? The poor fisherman killings that are likely illegal and might even be war crimes? The racist slurs directed at Somali people? The harassment and abuse of brown-skinned people in a bid to enforce this racially pure vision of America while promoting ‘reverse migration’? The elimination of life-saving aid to people in need?
Shall I continue?
Trump is the most divisive person on the planet, let alone the country he was elected to lead, and his actions and rhetoric have made the entire planet a colder, crueler and unsafer place. He’s a champion for peace in his own mind only, and no reputable group would ever honor him as such.
Enter Infantino’s FIFA!
Infantino’s damage to FIFA
Soccer’s global governing body has lost what little moral compass it had left under Infantino, who has cozied up to autocrats and human rights abusers at the expense of sponsors, the LGBTQ community and even FIFA’s own members. He’s been only too happy to debase FIFA further with his fawning devotion to Trump.
Infantino knows how badly Trump craves a Noble peace prize. Actually the whole world does, because Trump mentions it almost any chance he gets. But Infantino also knows tiny Cape Verde has a better chance of winning the World Cup in its first appearance than Trump has of winning over the Nobel committee.
The people who decide the Nobel prizes are not sycophants like Trump’s cabinet. They are not going to give Trump credit for made-up peace deals and agreements so flimsy they fell apart before the ink was dry. They are not going to ignore Trump’s deference to Vladimir Putin, treating him like the wronged party in the unprovoked war on Ukraine that the Russian despot started.
Nor are the Noble committee members going to reward Trump for his efforts to dismantle American democracy, a system that’s been a shining example for the rest of the world for more than 200 years.
Noble idea
So here is Infantino, creating a worthless award to save his good friend’s bruised ego. A month after this year’s Noble winner was awarded — to Venezuelan democracy activist Maria Corina Machado, not Trump — FIFA announced the annual Peace Prize. The award, Infantino said Nov. 5, would “recognize the enormous efforts of those individuals who unite people, bringing hope for future generations.”
It could have been a great idea. Anything that tries to reduce the hatred and division in the world is worth a try, and soccer has enough global sway for it to make a difference.
But Infantino revealed what a farce this Peace Prize is by awarding the very first one to Trump.
‘He says he has brought about peace in countries around the world, but at home and in our region, he is waging war verbally and quite literally, on sections of our people, including by unleashing a militarized force on immigrants,” Evan Whitfield, chair of the Human Rights Soccer Alliance, said in a statement.
“Trump has also threatened to bomb Mexico, a co-host of the World Cup, and to unjustifiably invade Venezuela, our near neighbors, and ridiculously, to subsume Canada, another World Cup co-host, into the U.S. In other words, to invade them.’
Well, when you put it like that …
Infantino made Trump happy — ‘This is truly one of the great honors of my life,” the president said — but it came at the expense of one of FIFA’s biggest events, the World Cup draw. Instead of talking about the best games and debating the Group of Death, the headlines from Friday’s event were about Trump’s ‘award,’ the ridiculousness of it and Infantino’s shameless toadying.
The ‘Peace Prize’ might be a fake, but the shame it leaves on anyone involved is real.
Follow USA TODAY Sports columnist Nancy Armour on social media @nrarmour.