US President Donald Trump won FIFA’s inaugural peace prize on Saturday, after incessantly asking for such an honor since he was elected back into office.
Trump was awarded the prize for his efforts to promote dialogue and de-escalation in some of the world's most volatile hotspots.
At the FIFA draw at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC, FIFA president Gianni Infantino presented Trump with the medal for “promoting peace and unity around the world.”
“You definitely deserve the first FIFA Peace Prize for your action, for what you have obtained in your way,” Infantino said, after a video compilation of Trump meeting with various world leaders played.
The FIFA president added that the prize was a “beautiful medal for you that you can wear everywhere you want to go.”
Trump wins inaugural FIFA peace prize at 2026 World Cup draw
Infantino, who was the evening’s emcee, also presented Trump with a trophy, a gold-plated globe carried by upraised hands.
Infantino previously said he thought Trump should have won his long-sought-after Nobel Peace Prize for his work on ending the Israel-Hamas War.
Last month, FIFA announced that a new annual award called the FIFA Peace Prize would be presented at the draw to "reward individuals who have taken exceptional and extraordinary actions for peace."
“This is truly one of the great honors of my life – and beyond,” Trump said.” I just want to thank everybody. The world is a safer place now.”
He thanked his family and praised the other two world leaders present at the draw, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum. Both Canada and Mexico will also host matches in the FIFA 2026 World Cup.
Earlier, Trump told reporters he did not care about prizes, but noted that he had "settled eight wars" in his 10 months in office.
"I don't need prizes. I need to save lives," Trump said. "I saved millions and millions of lives, and that's really what I want to do."
Notably, Infantino has moved to position himself as a key Trump ally. FIFA has established an office at Trump Tower in New York City, and Infantino has been a frequent visitor to the Oval Office. He was present at Trump’s inauguration and at the renaming of the US Institute of Peace to the Donald J. Trump US Institute of Peace.
Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado won the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize, enraging Trump supporters and leading the White House to accuse the committee of choosing "politics over peace."
The 2025 Nobel Prize awards actions from 2024, meaning nominations were closed before Trump took office. He may still be eligible to receive the award in 2026.