Donald Trump’s soccer boss buddy is facing calls for an investigation over his praise for the U.S. president and alleged invention of an award to make him feel better about not winning the Nobel Peace Prize.
The FIFA ethics watchdog has been asked by a governance nonprofit to probe the organization’s president, Gianni Infantino, and the hastily created “FIFA Peace Prize” he presented to Trump on Friday.
FairSquare on Monday submitted an eight-page complaint alleging “repeated breaches” of FIFA’s duty of political neutrality by Infantino, 55, and urging an investigation into how Trump, 79, was selected for the inaugural award, according to reporting by The Athletic.
“Mr Infantino’s engagement with President Trump must be underpinned by and in conformity with his duty of neutrality, which requires that he be non-partisan and impartial on matters of US domestic and foreign policy, unless speaking about issues that invoke FIFA’s own legal or human rights responsibilities,” the advocacy group wrote.
“In offering clear support for President Trump’s political agenda at home and abroad, Mr Infantino has breached that duty, and done so in a way that poses a clear threat to the integrity and reputation of football and of FIFA itself.”
The filing cites Infantino’s public lobbying for Trump to win the Nobel Peace Prize and his description of Trump as “a really close friend,” along with remarks echoing the campaign slogan “Make America Great Again.”
It also questions the process behind the prize unveiled during Friday’s draw for the World Cup Finals, which are due to be held next summer in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico.
The Athletic reports that FIFA’s Independent Ethics Committee can issue penalties ranging from warnings to bans. FairSquare also asks the committee to review whether the Council approved creating the award, as required by FIFA’s own statutes.
Infantino was reported to have blindsided his own top officials when he cooked up the prize weeks after Trump missed out on the Nobel.
FIFA has also come under scrutiny for securing the Kennedy Center at no cost for the glitzy draw, where Infantino placed a medal around Trump’s neck and praised his “decisive actions” for world peace. The center later said it was receiving $7.4 million via donations and sponsorships tied to the event.
The tacky spectacle included an on-stage riff from Trump about renaming football, America’s most popular sport.
Criticism of the award has also come from Human Rights Watch, which said the award appeared to have “no nominees, no criteria, no judges and no process.” Questions have also been raised regarding FIFA’s neutrality standard under Article 15 of its Code of Ethics.
FIFA did not respond to a request for comment to The Athletic.
The Daily Beast has contacted FIFA and the White House for comment.
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