The Trump administration has warned FIFA that the US won’t host the 2031 Women’s World Cup unless a massive change is made to its player policies.
The White House is pressing the global soccer body to align its transgender athlete policy with current US restrictions, which seek to exclude transgender women from female sports categories.
Andrew Giuliani, executive director of the White House’s World Cup Task Force, revealed on Thursday that FIFA has already told President Trump that the US is in line to stage the tournament in five years time.
‘I know they’ve already told the president that the U.S. is going to get the World Cup in 2031, and that really should be fantastic,’ Giuliani said in an interview, via Politico.
However, Giuliani made it clear that any federal cooperation is strictly conditional on barring transgender women from competing on the world stage.
‘It is important that the Women’s World Cup does not violate the policy of the United States of America in that it is important that women play in the Women’s World Cup and not biological men,’ Giuliani insisted.
Andrew Giuliani has warned FIFA that the US won’t host the 2031 Women’s World Cup unless a massive change is made to its player policies
The USWNT have won the Women’s World Cup a record four times in their history
The administration is using standard government guarantees – which typically secure operational essentials like visas and tournament security – as direct leverage.
‘That’s one of the the things from our standpoint that will be really key in making sure that that is something that is good before any government guarantee discussions get going,’ Giuliani added.
President Trump has long made restricting transgender athlete participation a core part of his domestic agenda, signing executive actions and urging sports governing bodies to adopt similar rules.
The White House’s current ultimatum puts intense pressure on FIFA, which has historically relied on a more flexible framework adopted back in 2011.
Rather than mandatory sex testing, FIFA’s current guidelines place the onus on individual national federations to verify the eligibility of their players before submitting rosters.
The political standoff comes at a time when the broader international sporting landscape is shifting, following the IOC’s recent decision to bar transgender women from competing in women’s events.
Trump has long made restricting transgender athlete participation a core part of his agenda
While FIFA has not yet formally awarded the 2031 tournament, a joint bid from the United States, Mexico, Costa Rica and Jamaica stands as the lone candidate.
Member associations are scheduled to vote on the official hosts for both the 2031 and 2035 Women’s World Cups at an Extraordinary Congress before the end of 2026.
Meanwhile, Giuliani added that he hopes the 2031 tournament can build on the momentum from this summer’s tournament.
‘I think it’s going to look a little different than this one,’ he said. ‘I think it’s going to be amazing. Probably some different cities involved.’
