FIFA announces new peace prize to be awarded at December’s World Cup soccer draw in DC

FIFA, the world soccer governing body, announced on Wednesday the creation of a peace prize, which it plans to award at the draw for the World Cup on December 5 in Washington.

The award, called the FIFA Peace Prize, will “recognize exceptional actions for peace,” FIFA said.

“In an increasingly unsettled and divided world, it’s fundamental to recognize the outstanding contribution of those who work hard to end conflicts and bring people together in a spirit of peace,” FIFA President Gianni Infantino said.

FIFA said the award, which Infantino will present this year, will be bestowed annually “on behalf of fans from all around the world.”

The press release announcing the award did not name its inaugural recipients. But it comes as US President Donald Trump, who has a close relationship with Infantino, was passed over for the Nobel Peace Prize last month. He did not win that award despite lobbying from fellow Republicans, various world leaders and himself.

Trump has touted his work to end various conflicts around the world, including by brokering the recent ceasefire in Gaza, part of the president’s 20-point plan to end the war.

In August, US special envoy Steve Witkoff, who has led American efforts to end the war, said at a Trump cabinet meeting that he wished the Nobel Committee would “get its act together” and award Trump the prize. The prize instead went to Venezuelan activist Maria Corina Machado.

Infantino and Trump were both scheduled to speak at an unrelated event in Miami on Wednesday. Infantino was also present at a peace summit in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, last month following the start of the Gaza ceasefire.

FIFA recently added another link to Trump by appointing his daughter, Ivanka, to the board of a $100 million education project partly funded by 2026 World Cup ticket sales.