"FIFA is testing our patience at the moment." That's not a frustrated fan on Reddit. That's a historian who has spent his career studying the game.
With the 2026 World Cup final between Spain and Argentina approaching, the tournament is limping to its conclusion under the weight of controversies that go well beyond bad refereeing decisions or dubious VAR calls. This one has Trump in it. Literally.
The Trump problem FIFA created for itself
In December, FIFA president Gianni Infantino handed Donald Trump a first-of-its-kind "peace prize" at the World Cup draw ceremony. Then, ahead of a USA vs Belgium knockout tie, Trump personally lobbied to have an American player's red card rescinded — and FIFA's disciplinary committee obliged. The US still lost the match, but the damage to FIFA's credibility was done.
"Once you set the precedent, you're a hostage to fortune," said Alan McDougall, professor of history at the University of Guelph. The logic is simple: if one head of state can get a red card overturned, what stops the next one from trying?
Infantino has also attended virtually every game of the tournament, prompting boos from fans at several venues. South African-Canadian coach Alan Koch put it plainly: "The carbon footprint from his personal flights is astronomical. FIFA isn't helping itself."
Hydration breaks, halftime shows, and changing the game itself
Then there are the hydration breaks — a three-minute pause mid-half, officially justified by player welfare in high temperatures. Koch isn't buying it.
"If they're done for player welfare, we'd all support that. But they're not — they're done for commercial reasons," he said. "You've taken a sport that is a two-period sport and made it into four periods. It's changed the outcomes."
The World Cup final will also feature a scheduled halftime show, extending the break between halves beyond the standard 15 minutes. Sponsors are satisfied. Purists are not.
The "VARgentina" meme — suggesting Argentina has benefited disproportionately from referee and VAR decisions — has flooded social media throughout the tournament. Egypt's coach publicly questioned the officiating after his side's 3-2 Round of 16 loss to Argentina. Christina Unkel, a former FIFA referee and ITV's rules analyst, said she has "never seen the level of chatter" around officiating integrity across the tournaments she's covered.
- Trump lobbied successfully to overturn a US player's red card
- Hydration breaks — dismissed by experts as commercial rather than welfare-driven — have reshaped in-game dynamics
- A halftime show is scheduled for the World Cup final between Spain and Argentina
- Egypt's coach publicly accused referees of bias after the Round of 16
- Infantino attended nearly every match, drawing boos from fans
There have been genuine footballing highlights. Erling Haaland became the tournament's breakout star. Lionel Messi scored his first World Cup hat trick. Canada reached the knockout stage for the first time. Cape Verde's goalkeeper Vozhina helped his underdog side hold Spain to a draw.
But those moments are getting buried. Any betting market built around "tournament of the tournament" narratives — Argentina's odds, Spain's consistency, individual player awards — now carries the asterisk of a competition where the rulebook felt negotiable depending on who was watching from the stands.
FIFA didn't respond to CBC News by the time of publication. McDougall's parting thought: "Is there a point at which FIFA does go too far? Or is football really too big to fail? This tournament is putting that to the test."
