"He doesn't know what this is": Trump parades FIFA boss Infantino in the Oval Office

Donald Trump forces the Juventus Turin players into embarrassed silence, while the US president makes FIFA President Gianni Infantino sweat in front of the cameras.

Donald Trump caused some awkward moments at a bizarre PR event with Juventus Turin football players and FIFA President Gianni Infantino at the White House: The US president embarrassed the players with absurd leading questions, before the embarrassed athletes became extras in Trump's remarks on the escalating Iran-Israel conflict. Trump then also brought up his close ally Gianni Infantino. The discussion revolved around the recently issued travel bans that the Trump administration imposed on people from numerous countries – shortly after Infantino had announced that everything was settled.

"To what extent do the travel bans affect the Club World Cup?" a reporter wanted to know from the US president. "Gianni, you take over," Trump urged the soccer president. "We're not worried," Infantino said. For the recently started Club World Cup, everything had been "smoothly arranged," and there was "excellent, excellent cooperation with the president, but also especially with the task force." Everything was "great."

"Gianni, tell me what entry bans are."

"I don't think he's too worried about the travel bans. He doesn't even know what the travel bans are about. Gianni, tell me what the travel bans are," Trump dictated to the reporters present. The FIFA president, who was being embarrassed, laughed dutifully. It was a bitter laugh, because Infantino, of course, knows very well what Trump's travel bans could mean for his premium event next year: a lot of trouble and chaos. Numerous teams are still vying for a ticket to the World Cup, and according to Trump's latest round of bans, they would have to travel without fans.

Iran has already qualified, and Cuba, Haiti, and Sudan are in the running. Sierra Leone could advance to the tournament via several playoff games. Exceptions to Trump's ban apply to "any athlete or member of a sports team, including coaches, persons performing a necessary support function, and immediate family members traveling to the World Cup, the Olympic Games, or any other major sporting event as determined by the Secretary of State." This applies to the 2026 FIFA World Cup and the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. As of now, there are no exceptions to the ban list for fans of the qualified teams. However, visas already issued will not be invalidated, it is stated.

The FIFA President bravely declared in the Oval Office that they now have a year until the World Cup to use the insights gained from the Club World Cup to further prepare for the major tournament with 48 teams, 104 matches, and—according to Infantino's promise—fans from all over the world. The Swiss national has been courting Trump, who massively and loudly interfered in the awarding process during his first term, for months. Infantino was one of the first leaders from the world of sports to congratulate Trump on his second term, and he was also a guest at his inauguration. But this close bond does not protect the sports official from being surprised by his partner.

At the FIFA Congress in mid-May, Infantino proudly announced: "Last week we had a meeting with the White House task force and the United States government. The world is welcome in America. The players, of course, everyone involved, all of us, but definitely all the fans too." Just a few days later, Trump announced that entry would be restricted or banned entirely for people from 19 countries. Infantino had previously been part of Trump's delegation on his tour of the Middle East. The fact that the FIFA President caused a scandal at the following FIFA Congress because of this political mission is another story .

"Otherwise there will be no World Cup"

The New York Post recently recalled an earlier quote from Infantino: "When it comes to FIFA competitions, it is obvious that every team, including the fans and officials of that team, that has qualified for a World Cup must have access to the country, otherwise there is no World Cup," Infantino told reporters in 2017 - a year in which Trump had issued travel bans on a number of predominantly Muslim countries during his first term in office.

Whether Infantino has to retract this quote rests solely in the hands of the mercurial US government. The not exactly anti-authoritarian World Cup hosts of 2018 (Russia) and 2022 (Qatar) did not impose any special entry restrictions for fans, and FIFA was satisfied.

At the end of what was a rather bitter date for football, Trump announced that the Juventus game in Washington was sold out – and that he had friends who had asked him for tickets. "Maybe Gianni can get them some," the US president said. And Infantino laughed again.