On December 6 th in Washington D.C during the official draw for the 2026 World Cup, FIFA awarded U.S. President Donald J. Trump with the inaugural “FIFA Peace Prize – Football Unites the World”. An award that was given to Trump without any transparency in regards to a list of nominees, the judges or the criteria. The decision landed less like a sporting honour and more like a diplomatic signal. In a world where football has become one of the most effective instruments of soft