Infantino apologises to Scaloni over World Cup trophy incident | OneFootball

The president of FIFA, Gianni Infantino, apologized this Saturday to the Argentine coach Lionel Scaloni after he was asked to wear gloves while handling the World Cup trophy during the draw for the 2026 edition.

On Friday, Scaloni was the involuntary protagonist of one of the most curious scenes at the group draw ceremony for the North American World Cup, held in Washington.

During the gala, the coach was responsible for presenting the trophy as a representative of the champion team from the last World Cup, in Qatar 2022.

Scaloni placed the trophy on the pedestal with extreme care, using impeccable white gloves — a protection that Infantino reminded on Saturday was unnecessary.

“I have to apologize to Lionel Scaloni for what happened yesterday,” said the Swiss official during another event in Washington, presenting the tournament's complete schedule.

“He was asked to wear gloves to touch the trophy. I apologize on behalf of FIFA, because of course champions can touch the cup,” Infantino stated to the coach, who was present.

“I didn't know, the great Phenomenon just told me, thank you,” added the official, pointing to the Brazilian legend Ronaldo, sitting next to him.

“What a barbarity!”

After the apology, Infantino returned the trophy to Scaloni for him to place it back on the pedestal — this time without the gloves.

“I was told I couldn't touch it without gloves (…) The person there didn't recognize me, no problem. Thanks for the gesture,” said the coach, smiling, while Infantino added: “What a barbarity!”.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.