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Former President Trump has once again declared he would pressure FIFA to relocate 2026 World Cup matches from a host city based on the local politics, with Boston becoming the third such city to receive such threats from the White House. Additionally, Trump remarked he would contemplate similar action against Los Angeles for the 2028 Olympics due to potential safety issues.

Legal Authority and Potential Influence

Even though Trump holds no formal power to personally cancel either event, he can lobby the international organizations overseeing each event to move host cities.

Setting for Statements

His comments were made during a media briefing with Javier Milei, who was at the White House following the announcement of a massive rescue package for the Argentine economy. Toward the close of the event, a journalist inquired Trump about a current unauthorized gathering in Boston where police officers were targeted and a cruiser was set on fire. The correspondent also asked if the situation could cause the removal of organizing rights for the 48-team football competition.

“I would take them away,” Trump remarked about the World Cup matches, set to be hosted at Gillette Stadium. “She is not good … they're extremist, and they’re occupying sections of the city. It's a major claim, don't you think?”

Urban Disturbances and Ideological Perceptions

Unauthorized gatherings, a digitally organized phenomenon where large crowds gather on public avenues during nighttime to conduct vehicular acrobatics, have emerged as a repeated nuisance in US urban areas since the lockdown closures. Current incidents have escalated into violence in the region, including the city. Yet, these gatherings are generally not considered linked to any specific partisan agenda.

“If someone is failing, and I feel there are security risks, I will call the FIFA head, who is outstanding, and tell him we should relocate it to another location,” the former president stated on Tuesday. “And he would do that. He wouldn’t love to do it, but he'd agree. Very easily, he'd comply.”

Organizational Alignment

The organization's head has been open his strategies to be visibly associated with Trump before the upcoming World Cup, set to be staged in multiple US locations across the US along with a couple in the northern neighbor and a few in the southern neighbor. The organization's leader has appeared at multiple Oval Office gatherings, arranged for Trump present the FIFA club award after the concluding game, and has even postponed his FIFA's internal meeting to accompany Trump on a trip to the Arab region earlier in 2025.

Previous Threats

Despite this, Trump from threatening the removal of FIFA World Cup matches from additional American venues. Recently, Seattle and the Bay Area metropolis faced comparable comments, with Trump stating both cities were “run by radical left lunatics who are clueless what they’re doing,” while questioning the safety level of both locales and claiming that events could be removed.

FIFA Response

FIFA vice-president Montagliani rebuffed Trump’s claims when he commented subsequently at a gathering in England.

“It is FIFA’s tournament, our responsibility, we decide such choices,” the vice-president declared. “With all due respect to sitting presidents, the sport is more important than political figures and the game will outlast their tenure and their government. It's the strength of football, that it is transcends a single person and more important than a nation.”

2028 Comments

Similarly, Trump’s reply to a query about Boston extended to a similar threat regarding the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

“In case I perceived LA was not going to be sufficiently organized, I will move it to another location as needed,” he said. “For the Olympics I might have to secure a varying consent, but we'd proceed.”

Any approval Trump refers to would must come from the IOC. The head, Kirsty Coventry, was elected to her post in this year and has not yet appear together with Trump, though she stated that she hopes for a meeting with him at eventually.

Further Comments

He also questioned California governor Newsom’s handling of the blazes, saying that a parallel incident could lead to the cancellation of the Games.

“If Newsom refuses to cooperate, we’re gonna have to be very tough,” Trump stated.

His statement was similarly direct for the Massachusetts city.

“The city better address these issues,” he remarked. “That’s all I can say.”