President Donald Trump Ally Puts ‘Jealous’ Gianni Infantino Critics on Blast

Former executive director of the White House Task Force for the 2026 World Cup Andrew Giuliani called out the “jealous” people who want to remove Gianni Infantino from power, taking a similar stance of support for the under-fire FIFA leader as U.S. President Donald Trump.

Just one week after this summer’s World Cup concluded with Spain defeating Argentina at MetLife Stadium, Infantino found himself swept up in a shocking controversy of his own doing. The 56-year-old drew up a plan to allow private investors to buy shares of future World Cup commercial rights.

Fierce backlash followed, led by UEFA, which threatened to boycott all future FIFA international tournaments if the proposal was not torn up. Infantino ultimately abandoned his plot, but he remains under intense pressure, with Europe’s governing body doubling down on its stance while also calling for a change in power, a sentiment sweeping across the soccer world.

Infantino still has some in his corner, though. He received support from the Argentine Football Association (AFA) and the Confederation of African Football (CAF), as well as U.S. President Trump and now, Giuliani.

Giuliani Issues Firm Statement of Support for Infantino

Andrew Giuliani is backing the under-fire Gianni Infantino. | Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

“It’s politics,” Giuliani, who is the son of former New York City Mayor and President Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani, told The Athletic about Infantino’s current situation. “I’ve seen this before. I’ve seen it before when they’ve targeted President Trump from a political perspective. I’ve seen it before when they’ve targeted other people.

“People are jealous when people are very high achievers. And what Gianni Infantino has done for FIFA is he’s taken them to a whole new level that probably they didn’t think was possible.

“You’ve got to remember, this is the very first World Cup that Gianni Infantino was president for landing, right? He inherited the Russia and Qatar World Cups, and did a good job with those, but this is the first one. It’s his vision on this.”

The 2026 World Cup, which unfolded across the United States, Canada and Mexico, was the first of its kind to feature 48 teams. The expanded format, along with exorbitant ticket prices, helped FIFA rake in $15 billion in revenue this summer, the most ever for a World Cup.

“What I’ll tell you is that for any soccer confederation or football federation president who is thinking about not voting for Gianni Infantino, it would probably be one of the most foolish decisions of your professional life.

“This guy literally just put on the largest global sporting event ever without any incident, making over four times the revenue of the last World Cup, and you’re thinking of ousting him. If Gianni Infantino doesn’t get re-elected unanimously, then whoever voted against him needs to get their head examined.”

Giuliani Reveals Details of Private Conversation with Infantino

The walls are caving in on Infantino, even after FIFA released a defiant statement backing his reign. FIFPRO, the global players’ union, demanded “governance reforms” in the wake of his “abuse of power,” while the likes of Victor Montagliani, Nasser Al-Khelaifi and Lise Klaveness are gaining traction as potential candidates to replace him at the helm of world soccer’s governing body.

With his bid for re-election coming in March 2027, Infantino needs all the help he can get to reshape his image and reputation, both of which were already murky to begin with. President Trump has publicly backed his ally, claiming it would be a “terrible mistake” to replace the “fantastic” Infantino.

Giuliani now revealed he spoke to Infantino after the recent fallout and assured the public the FIFA president has a “good plan over the next few months into March of next year to get re-elected for a third and final term.”

The plan would likely have to start with getting back in the good graces of the 55 member associations of UEFA, who could institute their boycott at the Women’s U-20 World Cup in September. Infantino would also need to win back the favor of Concacaf (The Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football) and AFC (The Asian Football Confederation).

Giuliani is urging Infantino’s detractors to look at the president’s entire reign before casting their judgements. “I would just say that you have got to look at Gianni’s full body of work and to also realize that he’s always trying to improve his organization, and I think that’s the thing.

“Just because you’re always trying to improve doesn’t mean that you’re not going to take a misstep here or there, right? As a human being, it happens, but I would look at the body of work and say this is the guy I’d want leading.”

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