‘A terrible mistake’: Donald Trump warns FIFA against replacing Infantino

US President Donald Trump has thrown his support behind FIFA president Gianni Infantino as pressure continues to mount on the football governing body's chief, warning that replacing him would be a "terrible mistake".Trump's intervention comes at a time when Infantino is facing one of the biggest challenges to his leadership, with UEFA, CONCACAF and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) accusing him of a "fundamental breach of trust" over a proposal to sell an interest in future FIFA World Cup profits to private investors.Trump, however, pointed to the success of the recently concluded expanded 2026 World Cup and backed Infantino's continued leadership.‘A terrible mistake’ if Infantino is replacedIn a post on Truth Social, Trump wrote: "FIFA would be making a terrible mistake if, for any reason, they even considered replacing President Gianni Infantino. He is fantastic, having just presided over the most successful World Cup, by four times, ever presented. If he is gone, it will never be as successful or profitable again! Thank you for your attention to this matter. President DJT".The strong endorsement comes just months before FIFA's presidential election in March next year, with Infantino facing growing questions over his leadership and the trust placed in him by member associations.The controversy erupted after Infantino announced the FIFA Forward Enterprise, which sought private involvement and investment in FIFA-related competitions, particularly the World Cup. The proposal triggered fierce opposition from several football associations and confederations.The plan was eventually withdrawn following the backlash. Infantino and FIFA general secretary Mattias Grafstrom apologised for the process, acknowledged that errors had been made and promised that they would not be repeated. FIFA also pledged to conduct a review, with its findings to be submitted to the FIFA Council at its next meeting.‘A fundamental breach of trust’The withdrawal, however, did little to end the controversy. UEFA, CONCACAF and the AFC launched a stinging attack on Infantino, insisting that the issue went far beyond communication or procedural errors.In an open letter to the "football family" on Monday, the three confederations said the dispute was not about money, World Cup expansion or competition allocations, but about the integrity of football's governing structures."This is not about money," they said, arguing that FIFA's reserves should instead be responsibly distributed to strengthen investment in member associations.They accused FIFA of presenting the episode as a communication failure when, in their view, it represented a deeper leadership problem."FIFA's recent letter to its Vice-Presidents and 211 Member Associations acknowledges that mistakes were made in the process. It treats this as a failure of communication, when what football witnessed was a failure of judgment," the confederations said.They further described the attempt to sell an interest in the World Cup as "a profound failure of judgment" and "a fundamental breach of trust with the very institutions FIFA exists to serve."The three confederations also called for an independent third-party investigation rather than a FIFA-led review, while FIFA has defended Infantino against what it described as a "concerted and ongoing effort" to undermine his leadership.Infantino received backing from FIFA's management board following a meeting in Morocco last week and apologised over the process surrounding the World Cup proposal. UEFA, however, said the announcement "changes nothing" about its opposition.Get the latest Sports News and Live updates. Download the TOI app.