Gianni Infantino accused of 'woefully inadequate' reply on Trump ties

Gianni Infantino has been accused of a "woefully inadequate" response to a request from Democratic members of the US House Judiciary Committee for FIFA's records on its dealings with Donald Trump, The Athletic reports. The deadline was August 9, 2026.

Congressman Jamie Raskin, the committee's ranking member, wrote to FIFA in late July. He asked for all contacts with Trump, his administration and the Trump Organisation, visitor logs from the Miami and New York offices, and a recorded interview with Infantino. His letter argued that the $15 billion FIFA generated from the World Cup was enabled by a "favoured" relationship with the administration.

The request also covered preservation of messages. Raskin's letter set out what it wanted kept:

The letter follows a year in which Infantino gave Trump the newly created FIFA Peace Prize, moved the World Cup draw from Las Vegas to the John F. Kennedy Centre in Washington, D.C., and took office space in Trump Tower. FIFA's dynamic ticketing policy is also under investigation by the Attorneys General of New York, New Jersey, Texas and California.

The Democrats had asked for the records, the visitor logs and the interview with Infantino to be delivered by August 9.

During the tournament, Trump contacted Infantino to review the suspension of United States striker Folarin Balogun before the knockout match against Belgium. FIFA confirmed that Balogun was eligible despite a red card in the previous fixture, and said an independent committee made the decision.

The French Football Federation withdrew its support for Infantino's re-election bid on September 10, citing governance failures at FIFA. If the committee's complaint about the response gains traction, it may add to the pressure on Infantino from within the game as well as from Washington.