Trump says it would be ‘terrible mistake’ to remove Infantino

US President Donald Trump has stated that it would be a "terrible mistake" to remove Fifa president Gianni Infantino from his position. This comes after Uefa, Concacaf and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) signed an open letter claiming Infantino broke trust "through deception" with his aborted Fifa Forward Enterprise (FFE) proposal.

FFE would have established a new company to handle commercial and ticketing rights for all Fifa competitions, including World Cups, with 21% of the shares sold to a private investment firm. Trump's endorsement is the first time he has publicly backed Infantino since the FFE plans emerged on July 28th. In a social media post, Trump declared, "Fifa would be making a terrible mistake if, for any reason, they even considered replacing president Gianni Infantino."

He praised Infantino, stating, "He is fantastic, having just presided over the most successful World Cup, by four times, ever presented." The 2026 World Cup, co-hosted by the US, Canada and Mexico, concluded recently, with Spain winning the title after defeating Argentina in the final. When addressing the FFE proposals for the first time on July 31st, Trump claimed he had not spoken to Infantino about the plans.

The proposed investor group for FFE was to be led by Thrive Eternal, an American venture capital firm founded by Joshua Kushner, brother of Trump's son-in-law Jared. Infantino has a close personal relationship with Trump and previously awarded him the inaugural Fifa Peace Prize in December 2025.