May 8 – FIFA have brought forward a Council meeting to facilitate Gianni Infantino’s joint trip with US President Donald Trump to Qatar and Saudi Arabia.
First reported by The Athletic, the Council, FIFA’s highest decision-making body, will convene on Friday at 4pm CET online instead of in-person next week, on the eve of the FIFA Congress in Asuncion, Paraguay, because of Infantino’s Middle East trip. Trump’s visit to Saudi Arabia and Qatar will mark the U.S. President’s first foreign visit in his second term.
A convicted felon, Trump was inaugurated on January 20 as the 47th president of the U.S. Infantino attended the inauguration in Washington D.C. Ever since, the relationship between the two has blossomed after Infantino was frozen out of the White House during Joe Biden’s term. In February, Infantino defended his relationship with Trump, arguing that it was “crucial for the success of a World Cup”.
On Tuesday, Trump, flanked by Infantino convened the first meeting of his administration’s 2026 World Cup task force. The football supremo highlighted the impact the 48-team World Cup will have on the U.S. which will co-host the tournament for the first time in 32 years.
At the end of the public meeting, Trump also hailed Infantino, who again wore a red tie in honour of the Republican party: “He’s like somebody that just woke up on Christmas morning as a young child and saw those toys under the tree.”
Those toys include a trip to the Middle East, a region that has been key to Infantino’s presidency. Both Qatar and Saudi Arabia have a close relationship with Infantino. The former hosted the 2022 World Cup and served as home to the FIFA president while Saudi Arabia will stage the 2034 World Cup after an expeditated bidding process that lacked transparency and good governance.
It’s the third consecutive time that the Council will meet online. Under Infantino, the Council has largely become a rubber-stamping body. Paid $250,000 a year, members rarely raise their voices. The body’s vice-presidents who are also confederation presidents receive a net annual compensation of $300,000.
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