The globe-trotting sports power broker now caught in the middle of Trump’s trade war
Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. On the night before he was sworn in for his second term, Donald Trump stood at a raucous victory rally and sent a special shoutout to a 54-year-old Swiss lawyer in the stands. He referred to him simply as Gianni, and Trump wanted to express his gratitude.
The Gianni in question was FIFA president Gianni Infantino, the head of world soccer’s governing body, and next summer, he is due to deliver Trump the biggest sporting event on the planet when the U.S. co-hosts the World Cup with Mexico and Canada. “This is FIFA at the maximum of its respect," Infantino said that night in a post for his 2.7 million Instagram followers.
“Being mentioned by the new president of the United States of America in his victory rally, in his victory speech, is unique. It’s beautiful." What Infantino couldn’t know then was that two weeks later, he would find himself in a decidedly uglier spot. He and FIFA are now caught assembling a monthlong sporting extravaganza in 16 cities from Boston to Vancouver to Monterrey in the midst of a rolling diplomatic crisis whose outcome no one seems able to predict.
Over the past week, Trump has threatened both of the U.S.’s neighbors—and World Cup co-hosts—with an all-out trade war, less than 500 days from the tournament’s opening match in Mexico City. How much Trump’s measures could affect a multicountry event that requires logistical coordination and smooth border crossings remains unclear. But the tension adds yet another layer of complexity to what will be the largest World Cup of all time.
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