LONDON (AP) – US President Donald Trump reminded Wednesday that FIFA, not the government, will ultimately decide which city will host. 2026 World Cup game.
Last week, Trump declared a “unsafe” city in the 104-game soccer tournament next summer, suggesting that its detailed hosting plans could be changed. FIFA was confirmed in 2022. Includes NFL stadiums near New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco.
The 11-person host cities in the US, three cities in Canada and two in Canada are contracted with FIFA, facing important logistics and legal issues to make changes in the eight months of the kickoff on June 11th.
“FIFA tournaments, FIFA jurisdiction, FIFA will make these decisions,” Victor Montagliani, Vice President of Soccer Body, said on Wednesday at a Sports Business Conference held in London.
Canada’s North American Regional Football Bodycon Kakaff president said the sport was “larger” than the current political debate.
“With respect for current world leaders, soccer is bigger than them, and soccer survives the administration, government and slogans,” Montagliani said in an on-stage interview. “That’s the beauty of our game. It’s bigger than any individual and bigger than any country.”
Trump’s comments last week answered questions about the World Cup city opposed to immigration and criminal crackdown.
“If you don’t think it’s safe, we’ll move it,” the US president said in his oval office.
“It’s going to be a bit dangerous for the World Cup,” Trump also mentioned the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, saying, “We’ll move that a bit, but I hope it doesn’t happen.”
The World Cup and Olympics rely on host governments at all levels for hundreds of millions of dollars worth of commitments on security, visa processing and law enforcement. The past four hosts for the Men’s World Cup have been Qatar, Russia, Brazil and South Africa.
Trump has close ties with FIFA President Gianni Infantino, a regular visitor to the White House. Infantino has not publicly commented on the city’s issues that have been deemed too dangerous to host the game in the 48-team tournament, which will be held until July 19th.
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