By Ben Church, CNN
FIFA President Gianni Infantino hands the Jules Rimet trophy to Donald Trump in the Oval Office on 22 August. Photo: Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP/Getty Images via CNN Newsource
As billions of fans around the world tuned in to watch the World Cup draw this week, they also got the opportunity to watch FIFA president Gianni Infantino present a new, somewhat puzzling award.
In November, world soccer's governing body announced this year would see the introduction of the FIFA Peace Prize - a new annual accolade given to someone who FIFA said had taken "exceptional and extraordinary actions for peace and by doing so have united people across the world".
No-one was surprised that US President Donald Trump received the inaugural prize on stage before the draw took place, but while FIFA said the award was presented on behalf of more than 5 billion soccer fans worldwide, how the winner was chosen wasn't exactly clear.
Here is everything you need to know about the new award and why Trump winning was so controversial.
When and where was it awarded?
The new prize was awarded before the World Cup draw took place on 5 December. The ceremony was held at the John F Kennedy Centre for the Performing Arts in Washington DC.
Trump now sits as the board chair of the Kennedy Center, after an overhaul of the previous leadership group.
US President Donald Trump (L) gestures alongside US First Lady Melania Trump during the draw for the 2026 FIFA Football World Cup Photo: AFP/SUPPLIED
Why did Trump win the award?
FIFA had remained tight-lipped over who would be bestowed the inaugural Peace Prize, amid rumours it was destined for the US president.
Predictably, though, Trump was named the winner.
Infantino presented Trump with the new trophy, a medal and a certificate, before thanking the US president for helping end wars and save lives.
While Trump has certainly contributed to brokering several agreements between longstanding foes, his role in securing ceasefires in some of the conflicts he has boasted about ending has been disputed by some of the countries involved.
That includes the conflict between India and Pakistan, which he mentioned in his acceptance speech.
Trump said winning the prize was "truly one of the great honours of my life", before thanking his family.
U.S. President Donald Trump receives the FIFA Peace Prize during the FIFA World Cup 2026 official draw. Photo: Dan Mullan/Getty Images
This, then, is just the latest moment that highlights how close Trump and Infantino have become in recent months.
On several occasions, the two had been seen together, not least at Trump's inauguration and at the Sharm El-Sheikh peace summit earlier this year.
Infantino was also a vocal supporter of Trump's bid to win the Nobel Peace Prize, an award ultimately given to Venezuela opposition leader María Corina Machado.
A day before the award was announced, Infantino took to Instagram to say that Trump "definitely" deserved it.
It's perhaps not a co-incidence, then, that FIFA created its own peace prize this year.
US President Donald Trump receives the FIFA Peace Prize during the draw for the 2026 FIFA Football. Photo: AFP/SUPPLIED
Why are human rights groups concerned?
Before Trump was officially named the recipient, several human rights groups were concerned that Infantino was cosying up to the president at the expense of political neutrality.
Advocacy group FairSquare told CNN Sports that the introduction of the prize "is just the latest example of serious misgovernance at FIFA and further proof that the organisation urgently needs to be reformed".
FairSquare director Nick McGeehan added: "Gianni Infantino's decision to hitch FIFA to Trump's MAGA project might make short-term commercial sense for FIFA, but it is obviously very harmful to the integrity and reputation of the game."
In a news conference on Wednesday (local time), Human Rights Watch (HRW) director of global initiatives Minky Worden said her organisation had reached out to FIFA to better understand the process behind how the prize was decided.
"We do not have an answer to that, which you could infer that there is no process, there are no other nominees, there was no judging," she said.
CNN Sports reached out to FIFA regarding the process of deciding the Peace Prize, but has yet to receive a response.
What does FIFA say?
In November, FIFA responded to queries from CNN regarding Infantino's relationship with Trump amid concerns from human rights groups that it's become too close for comfort.
The global soccer governing body told CNN that it's part of the role of its president to maintain good relationships with leaders of co-host nations.
"Since the awarding of the United Bid for Canada, Mexico and United States to host the FIFA World Cup 2026, the FIFA president has enjoyed a strong relationship with President Trump, along with leaders from fellow co-hosts Canada and Mexico," FIFA said.
"This has resulted in close collaboration, leading to the formation of the White House Task Force for the FIFA World Cup."
Now that Trump's win is official, it perhaps raises further questions about FIFA's relationship with the US president before next year's already controversial World Cup.
- CNN