Trump threatens to move World Cup matches from unsafe cities — FIFA vice president issues defiant response

A feud appears to have broken out between Donald Trump, the president of the most powerful country on Earth, and the vice president of an international sports tournament.

Trump suggested last week that some of the World Cup matches would need to be moved away from cities that he deemed unsafe.

'Football is bigger than them, and football will survive their regime and their government and their slogans.'

The matches are scheduled for many major U.S. cities including Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles, Kansas City, Miami, and in New Jersey.

When a reporter asked the president about the possibility of moving the soccer matches from Seattle and San Francisco, he said he would consider the idea.

"Well, that’s an interesting question ... but we’re going to make sure they’re safe," said Trump.

He added that the two cities were "run by radical left lunatics who don’t know what they're doing."

On Wednesday, FIFA Vice President Victor Montagliani issued a defiant statement about the threat at a sports business conference in London.

"It’s FIFA’s tournament, FIFA’s jurisdiction; FIFA makes those decisions," he said.

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Photo by ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images

"With all due respect to current world leaders, football is bigger than them, and football will survive their regime and their government and their slogans," he added. "That’s the beauty of our game is that it is bigger than any individual and bigger than any country."

Trump also indicated that he would consider moving the events for the 2028 Olympic games in Los Angeles.

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