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President Donald Trump on Wednesday addressed the issue of moving World Cup matches from Boston for a second straight day, after Mayor Michelle Wu issued a statement expressing confidence in the current schedule.
Boston and its surrounding communities are currently scheduled to host seven matches during the World Cup in North America next summer. The list includes five group stage matches, a round of 16 match and the first quarter-final on July 9.
At an Oval Office news conference touting his administration’s crackdown on crime nationwide, Trump was again asked about Boston and crime.
“Someone said, ‘Would we consider taking the World Cup away from Boston if they don’t make things right?’ The answer is yes. We have the right to do that with FIFA,” Trump said.
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Trump said the same thinking applies to the 2028 Summer Olympics, which are currently taking place in Los Angeles.
“So if we think Los Angeles is going to be bad, that also applies to the Olympics, but we’ll talk about FIFA first. You know, FIFA is very hot,” he said. “If we think there’s a reason why, whether it’s in Boston or elsewhere, they’re not doing their job, we’re going to take those World Cup games and move them somewhere else.”
On Tuesday, Trump initially said he would consider calling FIFA President Gianni Infantino to urge games away from the Boston area for safety reasons, after a violent incident in the city last week saw more than 100 people invade a street, leading to the fiery destruction of a police car.
Wu responded to Trump’s threat in a statement to PK Press Club Digital on Tuesday evening.
“Boston is honored and excited to host World Cup matches, and we look forward to welcoming fans from around the world to our great city, the cradle of freedom and the city of champions,” she said.
Wu made the statement after Trump called her “radical left” but also “smart” during initial threats.
“We can take them away. I love the people of Boston. And I know the games are complete, but the mayor is no good. There are worse people than her. At least she’s smart. You know, some people have extremely low IQs. That bothers me more. She’s smart, but she’s radical left,” Trump said.
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FIFA President Gianni Infantino, right, presents the FIFA World Cup Winners’ Trophy to President Donald Trump during an announcement in the Oval Office of the White House August 22 in Washington, DC. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
“The answer is yes, if someone is doing a bad job and if I feel the conditions are not safe, I would call Gianni, the director of FIFA, who is phenomenal, and I would say to him: ‘Let’s move him somewhere else,’ and he would do it. He wouldn’t like to do it, but he would do it, very easily, he would do it. And this is the right time to do it.”
PK Press Club Digital has contacted Wu’s office for further comment.
Trump has previously suggested he could declare cities “unsafe” for the 104-game soccer tournament and amend a detailed organizing plan that FIFA confirmed in 2022. It includes games at NFL stadiums near New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco.
FIFA vice-president Victor Montagliani told a sports and business conference in London earlier this month that it was the organization’s decision as to where matches would be played.
“It’s FIFA’s tournament, FIFA’s competence, FIFA makes these decisions,” Montagliani said.
Among the seven matches to be played at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, a suburb of Boston, there will be five group stage matches, a round of 16 match and a quarter-final match on July 9. News of so many big matches came as a surprise to local organizers.
“The later the tournament, the more eyes there are,” Mike Loynd, head of the Boston World Cup organizing committee, said when the schedule was announced last year. “For us it’s just about excitement… For us it’s a perfect schedule. I don’t think FIFA could have done a better job.”
President Donald Trump speaks as FBI Director Kash Patel looks on during a news conference on the administration’s fight against crime in the Oval Office of the White House on Wednesday. (AP Photo/John McDonnell)
The tournament is expected to generate $1.1 billion in local economic impact, create more than 5,000 jobs and generate more than $60 million in tax revenue throughout the region, according to organizers. They also expect that more than two million visitors will come to New England throughout the 39 days of the tournament.
Meanwhile, Wu has previously accused the Trump administration of being a party that “doesn’t follow the law.”
“At a time when this federal administration is already causing so much fear and harm in our communities, these threats are serious and far-reaching,” Wu said in August.
The remarks come after the Trump administration warned it could sue or cut federal funds if cities refuse to cooperate on immigration enforcement.
