FIFA boss Gianni Infantino claims Trump made World Cup an 'incredible success'

FIFA President Gianni Infantino has revealed what he thinks made the World Cup a success, and it's not the teams.

During a conversation in front of reporters on Friday (July 17), Infantino and President Donald Trump stood and discussed their thoughts on the global sporting event.

Infantino revealed that the US, Canada and Mexico co-hosting the games resulted in stadiums being packed full of fans who traveled all over the world, and even higher television ratings.

As Trump nodded in agreement, the FIFA boss went on to praise the POTUS and claimed he had played a role in bringing people together.

This comes right off the back of Infantino revealing that Trump would also play a major role in the World Cup Final.

Apparently, he'll be handing the winning team their trophy – which is an important part of the experience that team captains usually enjoy themselves.

According to the FIFA boss, Trump has been instrumental into the success of this tournament, telling reporters at Trump Tower: "The American dream, Mr. President, came to reality. We united the world."

The pair were jointly at the event in Manhattan, which acted as a reception for their international soccer players ahead of tomorrow's final between Argentina and Spain.

Infantino added of Trump: "You don't need people to compliment you, Mr. President, but this World Cup would not have been such an incredible success without you."

Trump responded that the World Cup is 'one of the all-time greatest sporting events in history,' before giving the last teams standing a message ahead of their match.

"So good luck to Spain and Argentina on Sunday and may the best team win," he said.

President Trump Attends a FIFA Reception https://t.co/vuHIzVSfb8

— The White House (@WhiteHouse) July 17, 2026

Earlier that same day, Infantino spoke at the United Nations on how the sport can be helpful to youth mental health.

There, he held the football that will be used in the match tomorrow, and called it 'a magic object which has the power to unite the world.'

"We hear it many times, don't we, that we live in a divided world, that we live in an aggressive world, that there are so many things that divide us, that create us problems," Infantino said. "But we know as well, and if there is one thing, if there is one thing that this World Cup has shown us and is showing us, we know that there are many more things that bring us together than things that divide us."

"We have seen millions of people coming together in the last month and a half to the United States, to Canada and to Mexico, but in every corner of the world, coming together in a peaceful way, in a joyful way, wanting to spend time together and wanting to celebrate a moment of community," Infantino added. "This is the strongest message ever and this is the message on which we have to build our future -- a future of community and a future of unity."

"In two days, we will know if Spain or Argentina will be the world champion," Infantino went on the say, before he concluded: "But what we know already, dear friends, is that football is not just the most popular sport in the world, but football has definitely become that common, that universal language that everyone speaks because everyone wants to come together."