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Miguel Maduro, the former chairman of FIFA’s governance committee, suggested that current FIFA president Gianni Infantino violated the governing body’s statutes by recently expressing support for President Donald Trump.
Maduro told The Athletic that he believed Infantino violated FIFA rules regarding political neutrality with his recent comments made about Trump at the American Business Forum in Miami on Wednesday, when Infantino said, “I think we should all support what he’s doing because I think it’s looking pretty good.”
“The last part of his statement does more than recognize the legitimacy of President Trump. It supports his agenda and his political actions and argues that others should also support them. He is taking a stand in what is an internal political debate in the United States,” Maduro said.
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President Donald Trump speaks alongside FIFA President Gianni Infantino after unveiling the 2025 Club World Cup trophy in the Oval Office of the White House, March 7, 2025, in Washington, DC. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
“If he can recognize the legitimacy of President Trump, he should also recognize that, in a democracy, others may oppose his policies. Remaining politically neutral requires not taking a position on this political debate, much less arguing that everyone should support President Trump’s policies. This constitutes a blatant violation of the duty of political neutrality imposed on every FIFA official by Article 15 of its Code of Ethics.”
The official FIFA Code of Ethics states the following regarding political neutrality:
“In their relations with government institutions, national and international organizations, associations and groupings, persons bound by this Code must, in addition to respecting the elementary rules of the art, remain politically neutral, in accordance with the principles and objectives of FIFA, confederations, associations, leagues and clubs, and generally act in a manner compatible with their function and their integrity.
“Violation of this article will be punished with an appropriate fine of at least 10,000 francs as well as a ban on participating in any football-related activity for a maximum period of two years.”
Trump threatens to pull World Cup matches from Boston if ‘there are unsafe conditions’
President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump in the stands with FIFA President Gianni Infantino and his wife, Leena Al Ashqar, during the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup final at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, July 13, 2025. (Jeenah Moon/Reuters via Imagn Images)
However, this section is found in Article 14, not Article 15 mentioned by Maduro.
PK Press Club Digital has reached out to FIFA and the White House for a response. FIFA refused to respond to The Athletic.
Trump, during his first term, developed a friendship with Infantino while securing the rights to host the United States, alongside Canada and Mexico, of the 2026 World Cup.
Shortly after the United States was awarded the tournament, Trump welcomed Infantino to the White House. Infantino, also serving his first term as FIFA president, made an impression by handing Trump red and yellow cards, joking that they could be used in the press.
The relationship blossomed in 2020 as the two planned their future.
In January, at a dinner at the world economic summit in Davos, near FIFA headquarters in Zurich, Infantino called the US president “my great friend”. Trump, always grateful for a compliment, responded by inviting Infantino to a White House signing event for the Abraham Accords, which aimed to normalize diplomatic relations between Israel and several Arab countries.
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U.S. President Donald Trump and FIFA President Gianni Infantino talk in the Oval Office of the White House after signing an executive order for a FIFA World Cup-related task force, in Washington, DC, March 7, 2025. (Jim Watson/AFP)
Trump signed an executive order creating a White House task force for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, which will be hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico.
Trump will chair the task force, while Vice President JD Vance will serve as vice chair.
