Trump regime distances itself from Infantino as under-fire Fifa boss faces calls to quit
The Trump administration has denied answering the call of Gianni Infantino as the under-fire Fifa boss scrambles to save his job.
Infantino is facing a possible vote of no confidence from Fifa members following last week’s fierce backlash to his plan to sell stakes in a new subsidiary that would hold the commercial rights to the World Cup.
He is reported to have sought support from President Trump after cultivating a close relationship with him but a spokesperson for US Secretary of State Marco Rubio denied claims they had scheduled a call with Infantino today.
“There are no plans for @SecRubio to speak with Infantino and there is no call this morning,” Dylan Johnson, Assistant Secretary of State for Global Public Affairs, wrote on social media.
It comes after Trump last week denied discussing Infantino’s sell-off plans, which would have involved investment from his son-in-law’s brother Joshua Kushner.
Infantino has cut an increasingly isolated figure since the controversial proposals leaked last week, plunging his 10-year stint at the top of Fifa into serious doubt.
Uefa, Concacaf and AFC, the governing bodies for Europe, North American and the Caribbean, and Asia, all rebuked the plans and a lack of consultation from Fifa.
Infantino’s senior advisor quit and his chief operating officer slammed the plan, which he said the Swiss-Italian had kept secret from even his most senior staff.
English and Welsh FAs lead calls for Infantino to go
Today, European football associations including the English and Welsh FAs indicated they would withdraw their previous support for Infantino ahead of next year’s Fifa presidential election.
Previously, he looked set to stand unopposed for a third full term but pressure is mounting on him to fall on his sword.
He will face a vote of no confidence at an EGM if more than 20 per cent of Fifa’s 211 FAs, or 19 members of the Fifa Council, call for his removal.
Infantino has sought to cultivate a close relationship with Trump since his return to the White House 18 months ago, with the US hosting the 2025 Club World Cup and most of this summer’s Worlrd Cup.
He notoriously awarded the first Fifa Peace Prize to Trump, who took Infantino with him on a state trip to the Middle East in late 2025, a move that caused the Fifa boss to arrive late to a Fifa Council meeting.