The President of the United States, Donald Trump, threatened this Tuesday (14) to withdraw Boston as one of the venues for the 2026 World Cup. The decision was reportedly motivated by a dispute between the Republican and the city’s leadership, which is governed by the Democratic Party, an acronym opposing Trump’s. The tournament will be played in the country jointly with Canada and Mexico.
The American used as justification an alleged increase in violence in the municipality. Trump even used the same argument to send National Guard troops to Washington, Chicago and Memphis, which are also controlled by Democrats.
Regarding the possibility of removing the World Cup games from Boston, Donald Trump responded that “we could take them away”, and added “I love the people of Boston and I know the tickets for the games are sold out. But your mayor is not good.”
The speech was directed at the head of the city’s municipal executive branch, Michelle Wu, a Democrat whom he called “smart”, but “radical left”. The mayor’s office did not immediately react to Trump’s comments and threats, but declared that “Boston is honored and excited to host World Cup matches,” saying they look forward to welcoming fans from around the world to our beautiful city, the cradle of freedom and the city of champions.”
The head of the White House had already suggested declaring some cities as “not safe” for the tournament and changing the plan presented by FIFA, organizer of the World Cup, in 2022. In response, the entity’s vice-president, Victor Montagliani, stated that the competition belongs to FIFA, as well as the jurisdiction and decision-making.
The Republican countered, saying that: “if someone was doing a bad job and if I felt there were unsafe conditions, I would call Gianni — the head of FIFA, who is phenomenal — and say, ‘Let’s move to another location,’ and they would do that.”
