Former FIFA president Sepp Blatter has suggested that football fans should not travel to the United States for this summer's World Cup.
The 23rd edition of the competition will be co-hosted across North America by the United States, Mexico and Canada.
The opening match of the World Cup on June 11 will be contested between 2010 foes Mexico and South Africa in Mexico City.
Over a month later, the United States are scheduled to host the final of the competition at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.
The US are staging the majority of the matches at the expanded tournament, with 11 host venues across the North American nation.
‘Avoid the US' – Blatter suggests fan boycott
On a social media post released on Monday (January 26), ex-FIFA president Blatter referenced recent comments made by Mark Pieth.
A Swiss law professor and anti-corruption expert, the 72-year-old previously worked with Blatter at FIFA over a decade ago.
“For fans, just one piece of advice: avoid the United States!” Pieth told the Swiss newspaper Der Bund earlier this month.
“You'll get a better view on television anyway. Upon arrival, fans should expect that if they don't behave properly with the authorities, they will be immediately sent home, if they're lucky.”
Blatter shared the first sentence of Pieth's remarks on social media and added: “I think Mark Pieth is right to question this World Cup”.
Sepp Blatter's FIFA past
Sepp Blatter served as the president of FIFA for 17 years, before resigning amid a serious corruption scandal in 2015.
The awardings of the 2018 and 2022 World Cups to Russia and Qatar respectively were extremely controversial, with Blatter at the heart of both decisions.
Now out of the FIFA fire, it appears that Blatter is now taking a more idealistic view on the world and a potential boycott of the World Cup.
FGG says: History repeats itself
In the months leading up to every single World Cup, there are calls for a boycott or cancellation of the tournament due to political or humanitarian reasons.
Like before, the 2026 competition is all-but guaranteed to go ahead and will be enjoyed by supporters around the world despite current concerns.
It is rather comical of Blatter to suggest a boycott of the World Cup given his corruption allegations during his time as president of FIFA up until 2025.
The world will enjoy the World Cup that North America provides over the summer.