The President of the United States, Donald Trump, will be the official figure handing the World Cup trophy to the future football world champion following the final match. The announcement was made by FIFA President Gianni Infantino during a panel discussion on the World Cup held as part of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. According to Infantino, the award ceremony will take place on July 19 at the stadium in East Rutherford, near New York, which is scheduled to host the final.
The FIFA chief indicated that the U.S. president will take part in the ceremony alongside representatives of the host nations, although he avoided mentioning Trump by name during his remarks. The upcoming World Cup will be jointly hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico, raising questions about the level of involvement of the other two heads of government. It remains unclear whether Mexico’s president, Claudia Sheinbaum, and Canada’s prime minister, Mark Carney, will participate in the trophy presentation. The presence of heads of state at the World Cup final ceremony is a long-standing tradition in international football.
At the 2022 tournament, the Emir of Qatar played a prominent role in the awards ceremony, while in 2018, Russian President Vladimir Putin was involved in the presentation following the final match. In recent months, Donald Trump and Gianni Infantino have maintained a visibly close relationship. During the World Cup group draw held in Washington in December, Trump was presented with FIFA’s Peace Award, a move that sparked notable criticism and controversy on the international stage.
Their cooperation was also on display during the 2025 Club World Cup in the summer, when Infantino and Trump jointly honored Chelsea FC after the club secured the tournament title. The appearance reinforced the growing intersection between political leadership and global football events. That ceremony, however, was not without controversy.
After the trophy presentation, Trump remained on the podium for the official winners’ photograph, breaking with long-standing protocol that typically requires political leaders to step aside once the awards are handed over. The moment drew widespread attention, prompting Infantino to politely but firmly guide the U.S. president off the stage to allow the traditional team photograph. The episode once again highlighted how politics and sport increasingly intersect at the world’s most high-profile sporting events.
