Trump threatens removal of World Cup games from Boston, Olympics from LA [View all]

[Celerity]

US president says games could be moved due to safety

Boston street takeovers, LA wildfires are blamed

https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2025/oct/14/trump-world-cup-olympics-threat-boston



Donald Trump has again said he’d pressure Fifa to remove 2026 World Cup games from a host city on the basis of that city’s politics, with Boston becoming the third such city to come in for threats from the US president. Trump also said he would consider similar action against Los Angeles for the 2028 Olympics on account of potential safety issues. Trump has no legal authority to directly take either action, but he can apply pressure to each competition’s governing body to move host cities.

His comments came at a press event with Argentinian president Javier Milei, who was visiting the White House after the announcement of a $20bn bailout for the South American country. Towards the end of the event, a reporter asked Trump about a recent “street takeover” in Boston that saw police officers attacked and a police car set aflame, and if the concerns raised by the incident could result in the revocation of hosting duties for next year’s expanded 48-team soccer tournament. The reporter also asked if Trump would work with Michelle Wu, the mayor of Boston, to address the issue.

“We could take them away,” Trump said of the World Cup games, which are due to be held at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, about 22 miles southwest of Boston. “Their mayor is not good … she’s radical left, and they’re taking over parts of Boston. That’s a pretty big statement, right?”

treet takeovers, a social media-driven phenomenon that sees large crowds of people gather on city streets late at night to perform stunts in cars, have been a repeated nuisance in American cities since the Covid-19 pandemic shutdowns. Recent such gatherings have turned violent in Massachusetts, including in Boston. However, the gatherings are generally not seen as being tied to any particular political ideology.

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