“FIFA Bought Him” – President Donald Trump Advocating For ‘Soccer’ to be the Only Sport Named ‘Football’ Has Fans Losing Their Minds

Donald Trump suggests to change NFL's name by replacing the term football.

“FIFA Bought Him” – President Donald Trump Advocating For ‘Soccer’ to be the Only Sport Named ‘Football’ Has Fans Losing Their Minds

Lionel Messi, Patrick Mahomes and Donald Trump (Image via IMAGO/Twitter)

In Short
  • Donald Trump advocates for renaming soccer to 'football' in the U.S.
  • His suggestion to change the NFL's name has sparked significant backlash online.
  • Only 18 out of 48 World Cup-qualified countries have a tax exemption agreement with the U.S.

With the 2026 FIFA World Cup set to commence on June 11, Donald Trump hinted at a big change that has the internet divided. The president argued that the United States should stop calling soccer by that name and start calling it “football.” It basically means that the NFL needs to rethink its name, the National Football League.

Trump attended the World Cup draw alongside FIFA president Gianni Infantino, the prime minister of Canada Mark Carney, and Mexico’s president Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo in December 2025. After taking the stage, the 47th President of the USA noted that Americans never call soccer by its European term, football.

When you look at what has happened to football in the United States, which is soccer in the United States, we seem to never call it [football] because we have a little bit of a conflict with another thing that’s called football.

Donald Trump announced

Donald Trump’s suggestion to change the NFL’s name to accommodate soccer sparks backlash online

Outside the US, soccer is called football, and the term “American football” refers to a different sport. Americans favor gridiron football over soccer, largely because the sport surged in popularity during the 1920s, around the same time the term “NFL” was introduced.

FIFA Bought Him - President Donald Trump Advocating For 'Soccer' to be the Only Sport Named 'Football' Has Fans Losing Their Minds
Donald Trump (Image via IMAGO)

Despite the distinction, there was still confusion among the population due to the soccer governing body being named the United States Soccer Football Association. To resolve the situation, they dropped the word “football” from the name and started calling themselves the United States Soccer Federation.

Aside from the USA, a few neighboring countries also refer to the sport as soccer. If Donald Trump were to attempt to change the name of the NFL, it might stir up chaos.

When you think about it, shouldn’t it really be called … this is football, there’s no question about it. We have to come up with another name for the NFL. It really doesn’t make sense when you think about it.

Trump said

It didn’t take long for fans to call out Trump for suggesting a change to the NFL’s name.

World Cup Countries to pay extra costs as FIFA failed to agree US Tax deal

More than half the countries that have qualified for the WC are expected to pay additional costs and potential losses due to FIFA’s failure to agree on a blanket tax exemption with the United States government. This will mostly affect the smaller nations and tournament debutants, Curacao and Cape Verde.

Out of the 48 qualified countries, only 18 have signed a double taxation agreement (DTA) with the US, which exempts their delegations from paying federal taxes. However, this exemption doesn’t cover athletes, since under US federal law, they’re required to pay taxes when they perform on US soil.

According to a piece by The Guardian,

Carlo Ancelotti, head coach of the Brazil national team, will have to pay tax on his earnings in both Brazil and the US, whereas Thomas Tuchel, the manager of England, will only be taxed in the UK.

The Brazilian management is expected to cover Ancelotti’s extra tax bill. But the smaller countries stand to lose money due to the arrangement.

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