Top criminal lawyer warns football fans to 'stay away from the USA' for the World Cup as Blatter endorses message

FT Desk

• 27 Jan 2026 01:45 CST
• 6 min read

Nieuws

A top criminal lawyer who once worked within FIFA has warned football fans to stay away from the United States this summer during the 2026 World Cup.

The next edition of the World Cup will take place across the USA, Mexico and Canada but there are numerous concerns about supporter safety due to the current unrest in North America.

President Donald Trump has distributed Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents throughout the country which has catalysed incidents of violence on the streets.

Over the last two weeks, two citizens have been shot and killed by ICE agents - Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

"For the fans, there's only one piece of advice: stay away from the USA!” I think Mark Pieth is right to question this World Cup. #MarkPieth #GianniInfantino #DonaldTrump #FIFAWorldCup2026 #USA

— Joseph S Blatter (@SeppBlatter) January 26, 2026

Trump's foreign policy has also led to major criticism after he kidnapped Venezuela leader Nicolas Maduro.

Since Trump was awarded FIFA's Inaugural 'Peace Prize' by FIFA president Gianni Infantino, he has ordered military action in Venezuela and Nigeria and has also threatened similar action in Greenland, Colombia, Iran and even fellow tournament hosts, Mexico.

Mark Pieth, who was once employed to investigate corruption within FIFA, believes fans should stay away from America for the World Cup.

In an interview with Derbund, he said:

"The country itself is in a huge uproar. What we are experiencing domestically, the marginalisation of political opponents, the attacks by immigration authorities and so on, does not turn you on as a fan to travel there. The United States is in a similar situation in terms of security as Mexico. In Mexico it is the drug gangs that threaten with assaults, in the USA it is a state becoming authoritarian.

"Combined with the immigration policy, there is a marginalisation of certain fans that radiates. And something else comes on top of that. If a state has become an unjust state, it should not be allowed to host a World Cup. This is laid down in the statutes and also in a FIFA human rights code.

"The USA has also become a very aggressive player internationally that beats rules into the wind. The USA says explicitly: 'We are not interested in international law.'

"They are now showing this in Greenland or earlier in Venezuela. Even if you are not a friend of Maduro: Simply pulling a head of government out of circulation is rather problematic. The question now is: Should you start a boycott call? But there is something simpler: do you even have to go there? The problem is: the players must do that. On the other hand, it may be time for associations such as Uefa and national associations to wake up. They put up with everything.

"Conditions that make a country highly insecure have always existed. But in the case of the United States, this was not expected. That's clear. If we now take everything we talked about, there is only one piece of advice for the fans: Stay away from the USA! You can see it better on TV anyway. And: When entering the country, fans have to expect that if the officials don't like them, they will be sent home directly on the next plane. If they're lucky."

Pieth's sentiment was endorsed by former FIFA president Sepp Blatter, who has been critical of the relationship between Infantino and Trump.

"'For the fans, there's only one piece of advice: stay away from the USA! I think Mark Pieth is right to question this World Cup," he tweeted.

UK politicians call to ban USA from World Cup

Twenty-three British MPs from Labour, the Lib Dems, Green Party and Plaid Cymru have signed a motion in parliament, requesting that the United States be banned from featuring in the World Cup as well as the next Olympics, which they are also set to host.

The motion reads:

"That this House expresses concern over the escalation of United States actions against Venezuela, including the use of military force, the kidnapping of President Nicolás Maduro, and ongoing military strikes in Venezuelan territory; notes that these actions are a direct intervention in the internal affairs of a sovereign state and were widely condemned by United Nations as violations of Venezuelan sovereignty and international law; further notes the repeated veiled and overt threats made by senior United States officials towards other sovereign states, including Denmark, Colombia and Cuba; believes that this conduct undermines the rules-based international order; further believes that international sporting events should not be used to legitimise or normalise violations of international law by powerful states; calls on international sporting bodies, including FIFA, to consider the exclusion of the United States from the World Cup and other major international competitions until it demonstrates clear compliance with international law and respect for the sovereignty of other nations; and urges the UK Government to oppose double standards in the enforcement of international norms, regardless of a state’s power or influence."

The US claim that the capture of Maduro was justified as he is, allegedly, involved in terrorism and drug trafficking.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said he was "deeply concerned that rules of international law have not been respected" during the US intervention.

Both the US government and FIFA have not commented on the motion set out by the UK politicians, as of yet.

At the moment, Russia is banned from competing in FIFA competitions following their invasion of Ukraine.

"Let's have consistency," Brian Leishman, a Labour MP who has signed the motion, told the Daily Mirror when asked about the US action in Venezuela.

"It's an invasion of a sovereign nation and the kidnap of a president in Venezuela. I'm very critical of Maduro, I want to be very clear on that, but what we've seen is a breach of international law. When you see how Russia has been treated, which is absolutely correct, I just want there to be consistency."