Leaked documents have placed fresh scrutiny on FIFA President Gianni Infantino, suggesting that advisers prepared a detailed script for how he should cultivate Donald Trump, according to Politiken’s report. The guidance reportedly included flattering phrases for encounters with Trump, including the translated line: “I admire your focus.”

The details point to a deliberate effort to manage one of FIFA’s most important political relationships ahead of the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico. They also arrive at a sensitive moment for Infantino, whose leadership style and influence over FIFA’s internal structures have drawn renewed criticism.

A presidency under pressure

Infantino has led FIFA since February 2016, meaning his presidency has now passed the ten-year mark. During that period, the organisation has expanded its commercial ambitions and global reach, but critics have repeatedly questioned whether FIFA’s internal controls are strong enough to restrain its most powerful official.

The latest disclosures add weight to that criticism. They portray a president operating with considerable freedom in the political arena, where football administration, diplomacy and access to power increasingly overlap.

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The peace prize question

The documents also revive scrutiny of the FIFA Peace Prize – Football Unites the World, a newly created award that FIFA introduced in 2025 and first presented to Trump later that year. The prize proved controversial because it appeared to draw FIFA, an organisation that often stresses political neutrality, closer to one of the world’s most polarising political figures.

FIFA has described the award as a way to recognise exceptional actions for peace and unity. Critics, however, have questioned the transparency of the process and whether the prize was subjected to sufficient internal debate before being announced.

FIFA’s oversight problem

Taken together, the leaked script and the peace prize have sharpened broader concerns about governance under Infantino. The central question is not whether FIFA should speak to political leaders, that is unavoidable for a global sports body preparing a World Cup, but how much discretion its president should have when doing so.

For FIFA, the issue is now larger than one script or one award. It is about whether the organisation has the independence, transparency and internal checks needed to scrutinise the conduct of the person who leads it.

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