WASHINGTON, Sept 26 (Bernama-dpa) — United States (US) President Donald Trump has said that 2026 World Cup matches could be moved to other locations if the designated host city is deemed unsafe, reported German Press Agency (dpa).
Trump told reporters on Thursday at the White House that this also applies to the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.
Trump said he expects the World Cup to be “very secure,” but added, “If I think it isn’t safe, we will move it into a different city. If I think it is not safe, we are going to move it out of that city.”
The president said he hopes this won’t happen. Trump has repeatedly spoken of growing crime rates in cities governed by Democrats.
The US hosts the 48-team tournament together with Mexico and Canada. Its 11 host cities are Seattle, San Francisco, Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles, Kansas City, Miami, New York/New Jersey and Philadelphia.
Trump has sent the National Guard to Los Angeles and Washington to counter crime, said he would also send it to Memphis, and possibly to Chicago as well.
There are doubts whether the US government has the power to change host cities of the World Cup run by football’s governing body FIFA, with signed contracts among the reasons.
–BERNAMA-dpa