Over 100,000 call on Fifa to probe Infantino over Trump ties

The pressure on Gianni Infantino has moved up another gear ahead of his bid for re-election. Human rights organisation FairSquare announced on Tuesday that more than 100,000 people have backed a formal complaint urging Fifa's Ethics Committee to open an investigation into the president over suspected breaches of the governing body's code of ethics linked to his relationship with US president Donald Trump.

• More than 100,000 people sign a formal complaint led by FairSquare against Gianni Infantino.
• He is accused of abuse of power, failing to remain politically neutral and breaching loyalty duties.
• The complaint follows an initial filing from December 2025 that has drawn no response from the Ethics Committee.
• FairSquare is demanding a two-year ban from all football-related activity.
• Infantino is running for a fourth term in March with no major rival against him.

What FairSquare accuses Infantino of doing

The complaint lists eight specific incidents. At its core is the personal and public relationship between Infantino and Trump, which FairSquare argues is incompatible with the political neutrality required of a sports leader at that level. The main accusations include abuse of power, failure to remain politically impartial and violations of loyalty duties in what is described as an attempt to ingratiate himself with the US president.

One of the most controversial episodes took place during the World Cup, when Trump reached out to Infantino to urge a review of the red card shown to American forward Folarin Balogun. The sanction was lifted shortly afterwards. For FairSquare, that sequence points to political interference that undermines the independence of the refereeing authorities.

Balogun's red card and the Peace Prize at the centre of the case

Beyond the Balogun incident, the group argues that Infantino publicly endorsed Trump's political slogan and agenda, something expressly incompatible with the impartiality required of Fifa's presidency. He is also accused of unilaterally creating the Fifa Peace Prize, which was handed to Trump without prior approval from the Council, a body whose sign-off is essential for decisions of that kind.

The allegations are a lot more serious. We now have this public and political concern and we felt it was time to again put pressure on the Fifa Ethics Committee and really lay down the gauntlet to them.

The Fifa Forward plan and the abandoned stake sale

The complaint also points to the Fifa Forward Enterprise scheme, an initiative Infantino is said to have pursued privately alongside investors with political connections. The plan, which involved selling a stake in Fifa events to private equity buyers, was abandoned following a global outcry. FairSquare frames that move as another abuse of power, putting outside interests ahead of football without proper oversight.

Why this case goes far beyond Infantino

Nicholas McGeehan, director at FairSquare, explained that the new complaint follows an initial one from December 2025 and comes after developments during and after the World Cup, which concluded in July. The organisation says Fifa's Ethics Committee confirmed receipt of the original filing on 12 December last year but has provided no update since, which justifies this renewed push.

This complaint is about a lot more than Infantino. Really, for us, it's about demonstrating to the policymakers who should be scrutinising Fifa's conduct and its governance that the organisation is incapable of regulating itself.

In July, the International Olympic Committee dismissed a separate FairSquare complaint over Infantino's public support for Trump, concluding the issue fell outside its Ethics Commission's jurisdiction. That precedent, the group argues, makes it all the more urgent for Fifa to act on its own.

Infantino's fourth term bid and the term-limit dispute

Infantino is running for a fourth term as Fifa president in March, with no major rival standing against him. He remains intent on standing despite renewed criticism of his leadership. FairSquare asked Fifa last month to rule him ineligible, arguing he has already served the maximum three terms allowed under the organisation's statutes.

Infantino's defence rests on an argument he successfully used in 2022: his first term, which began in 2016 after Sepp Blatter's resignation, should not count towards the limit because it merely completed an interrupted mandate. That interpretation allowed him to remain eligible then, and it is decisive for his future once again.

Who is behind the Reboot Fifa campaign

The complaint is part of the Reboot Fifa initiative, led by FairSquare with the stated aim of renewing governance across world football. The group has spent months highlighting what it sees as a lack of accountability inside the sport's top body. The collection of signatures is also meant to send a political message: that outside institutions should take a more active role in overseeing Fifa.

The requested sanction is clear: a two-year ban from all football-related activity for Infantino. The decision now rests with the Ethics Committee, a body whose independence and capacity to act is once again under scrutiny with this latest chapter.