The FIFA Peace Prize, introduced less than a year ago as an annual honor for extraordinary contributions to peace, faces potential cancellation. Following mounting pressure from several member nations, the FIFA Council has tasked its Football Social Responsibility Committee with evaluating the award’s merits, which could ultimately leave US President Donald Trump as the prize’s inaugural and only recipient. Well, it is now close to being scrapped, which would make the US president its first and only winner. And why might it be scrapped, so what was the prize about. According to FIFA, The award was created to “reward individuals who have taken exceptional and extraordinary actions for peace”. As a result, FIFA’s 22-member Football Social Responsibility Committee was tasked with assessing the merits of the award. The Asian Football Confederation and CONCACAF, which runs the sport in North and Central America and the Caribbean, that plan was ultimately abandoned in the face of widespread criticism with a rebellion led by the European governing body UEFA.
During a recent council meeting in Zurich, various member nations demanded the discontinuation of the award, while others advocated for prohibiting the recognition of politicians. FIFA vice president and English Football Association chief Debbie Hewitt confirmed that the committee will scrutinize the origins of the prize, the decision-making process behind its inception, and whether it should be abolished or reformed. A formal recommendation is anticipated before the next council meeting in Doha on December 16.
The initiative, officially titled “FIFA Peace Prize – Football Unites the World,” was launched on November 5. FIFA President Gianni Infantino presented the inaugural honor to Trump at the World Cup 2026 draw ceremony held at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC. At the event, Infantino explicitly addressed the president, stating, “This is your prize. This is your peace prize.” The US leader had been heavily favoured to win the inaugural prize after failing to win the Nobel Peace Prize despite an aggressive campaign involving endorsements from other world leaders. But the prize is a departure from the federation’s traditional focus on sport, infantino has repeatedly spoken about football as a unifier for the world.
The selection of Trump sparked immediate controversy.
Critics noted the award was announced shortly after a deadly US air strike in the Caribbean. Critics pointed out that the recognition came less than 24 hours after the Trump administration carried out a deadly air strike in the Caribbean.
Furthermore, tensions escalated two months later when the United States and Israel launched a military campaign against Iran, resulting in the assassination of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and strikes on Iranian nuclear and military installations.
While the conflict has persisted, Trump stated recently that no further attacks against Iran would occur before the November 3 midterm elections.
Opposition to the prize extends beyond government representatives. In October, the Norwegian Football Association (NFF) filed formal complaints with FIFA committees concerning the award, arguing that it pulls the organization into political spheres where it does not belong. NFF president Lise Klaveness has publicly called for the abolition of the prize, asserting that international peace efforts are already managed independently by the Nobel Institute. Trump thanked FIFA and called the award “one of the great honours of my life”.
Human rights organization FairSquare also challenged the award, filing a complaint with the FIFA Ethics Committee and accusing Infantino of violating his neutrality mandate. Australian midfielder Jackson Irvine expressed similar concerns, telling Reuters that the award undermines FIFA’s human rights policies and contributes to the perception that the governing body is disconnected from its grassroots communities. He described the decision as a mockery of the organization’s stated goals regarding positive global change. “As an organisation, you would have to say decisions like the one that we saw awarding this peace prize makes a mockery of what they’re trying to do with the human rights charter and trying to use football as a global driving force for good and positive change in the world,” Irvine told the Reuters news agency in an interview. “Decisions like that feel like they just set us back in the perceived market of what football currently is, especially at the top level, where it’s becoming so disconnected from society and the grassroots of what the game actually is and means in our communities and in the world.”.
Former UN official Craig Mokhiber echoed these sentiments, labeling the recognition of Trump a “truly shameful development.” Mokhiber accused Infantino of attempting to curry favor with the US administration to obscure records of human rights violations and support for Israel, particularly during the ongoing conflict in Gaza. FIFA has consistently declined to intervene in such matters, with Infantino maintaining that the organization cannot resolve complex geopolitical issues. According to “The purpose is to raise these issues formally with the appropriate bodies, to have them examined, relevant evidence obtained and accountability for the conclusions reached,” the NFF, In a statement.
The controversy coincides with broader scrutiny regarding Infantino’s leadership. The FIFA president, who has held his position since 2016, is currently campaigning for re-election in March. His tenure has been marked by significant criticism over a $4.2 billion proposal to sell a 20 percent commercial stake in the World Cup, a move that prompted widespread calls for his resignation. Such as the World Cup, to private investors, infantino has been under fire since his announcement in late July that he wanted to open FIFA’s premium competitions.
Regarding the status of the prize, FIFA referred inquiries to Infantino’s official remarks, which confirmed that the Football Social Responsibility Committee is actively analyzing the award. A final decision will be formally deliberated at the upcoming council meeting in Qatar.
