According to the New York Post, President Trump is planning to recommend FIFA President Gianni Infantino for the next UN Secretary-General position. The current Secretary-General, António Guterres, will conclude his term this December.
People close to Trump revealed that the president believes Infantino enjoys global respect and possesses a "special ability" to unite people.
However, it remains uncertain whether Infantino himself is willing to take on this responsibility. His relationship with Trump is exceptionally strong; in December last year, Infantino even established FIFA’s first-ever "Peace Award" and directly presented it to Trump.
During the summer’s World Cup co-hosted by the U.S., Canada, and Mexico, their interactions sparked significant controversy. When U.S. player Balogun received a red card and faced suspension, Trump personally called Infantino, claiming the decision was unfair. Subsequently, FIFA unprecedentedly changed the player’s suspension to “deferred execution”.
This clear case of political interference drew strong condemnation from European football governing bodies, although Infantino himself denied having intervened in the matter.
Under United Nations rules, a new Secretary-General must first gain approval from the 15-member Security Council, then be confirmed by the General Assembly. Historically, those appointed to this role have been seasoned politicians or diplomats. Yet Trump has consistently favored non-traditional appointments—for example, he previously appointed entertainment figure Linda McMahon as Secretary of Education.
Trump’s idea of appointing a football executive to lead the UN may seem absurd at first glance, but it actually reflects his long-standing “anti-establishment” and “pragmatic” political logic.
To Trump, managing FIFA—with its over 200 member associations—shares similar organizational scale with coordinating the UN’s 193 member states. Infantino’s cross-sector coordination skills and global influence perfectly align with Trump’s dissatisfaction toward the traditional diplomatic bureaucracy.
Yet, the vision of highly personalizing—and even trivializing—international organizations faces insurmountable institutional and practical barriers. The UN Secretary-General must not only handle serious geopolitical issues such as war and nuclear proliferation, but also secure unanimous approval from the five permanent members of the Security Council.
Infantino’s “red card intervention” during the World Cup has already severely damaged his perceived political neutrality in the eyes of some nations.
In addition, breaking the long-standing “unwritten rule” of regional rotation for the Secretary-General position, along with the massive pay cut—from $6 million annually to just $418,000—represents major real-world considerations he would need to confront. This proposal seems more like a highly publicized political experiment than a viable policy blueprint.
Original source: toutiao.com/article/1871412860525580/
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author.