Fifa president jokes about British football fans, defends ticket prices for 2026 World Cup
Gianni Infantino also addressed concerns around the staging of this summer’s finals in the United States at the World Economic Forum
Fifa President Gianni Infantino made a joke about British football fans’ behaviour and defended ticket prices for this summer’s World Cup in North America during a speech to world leaders on Thursday.
Infantino addressed concerns around the staging of this summer’s finals in the United States amid rising domestic tensions there in an address at the World Economic Forum in Switzerland, citing how there had been “a lot of critics” in the build-up to the Qatar finals in 2022.
“When the ball started rolling and the magic started, we had virtually no incidents. For the first time in history also, no Brit was arrested during a World Cup. Imagine! This is something really, really special,” he said.
“So it was a celebration, it was a party, and the next one in the United States, Canada and Mexico will be exactly the same. People want occasions to meet, to come together, to spend time, to celebrate, and this is what we try to give them.”
Infantino said the finals would be “the greatest celebration of humanity”, despite human rights groups voicing concerns about a number of the policies adopted by the administration of President Donald Trump.
In response to the Fifa president’s comments, the Football Supporters’ Association said: “While we’ve got Mr Infantino’s attention, we’d like to point out that rather than making cheap jokes about our fans, he should concentrate on making cheap tickets.”