It isn’t a World Cup tournament without drama, and no, we’re not talking about shady calls from chump referees. The past month has seen numerous events grace headlines everywhere calling the tournament, some venues, and some teams into question. This, like Brazil and Germany qualifying every four years, is nothing new.
So what the heck is happening? Read on below.
U.S. Host Cities Still Need Funding
To say the obvious: it isn’t cheap to host the World Cup. The 11 host cities in the US were promised financial assistance from the federal government in order to deal with a projected $250 million shortfall created by FIFA’s ridiculously restrictive contracts. The government set aside $625 million to dole out among the 11 hosts through FEMA to cover a variety of costs, such as security, fan zone support, etc. The money has yet to be distributed and representatives of the host cities are freaking out.
The now-former DHS Secretary Kristi Noem blamed the lack of funding on the government shutdown in mid-February. The funding, however, was promised no later than January 30. Many cities have had to get creative while others are still figuring out other potential solutions beyond minimizing or, worse, cancelling their planned celebrations to make up for the shortfall.
In Kansas, Gov. Laura Kelly and the House approved a state of disaster emergency from February through July to allow for additional federal funding if necessary. In Boston, the city is butting heads with FIFA, the Boston 26 board and the Kraft Group. The city needs nearly $8 million upfront to cover security costs, but the Kraft Group, which has offered to assist with the fees, is offering a reimbursement after the tournament. Meanwhile, the city of Miami needs $70 million by the end of the month to meet its schedule.
There was a bit of relief days ago when the U.S. Department of Transportation announced a $100.3 million investment from the Federal Transit Administration towards funding operating costs of public transportation in the 11 host cities.
SOURCES: ESPN, U.S. DOT, Inside World Football, The Kansas Reflector, CBS News
Mexico To Host As Planned, But With Additional Security
It hasn’t been a full month since Mexican security forces killed Cartel Jalisco Nueva Generación leader Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, aka El Mencho. The CJNG retaliated with attacks across 20 states that left gas stations burned, businesses looted and roads blocked for days.
One of the questions following the aftermath was if Mexico would still host its portion of games for the World Cup, including the final qualification spots later this month, after this bout of violence?
The answer: DUH! Three days after Mencho’s death, the Mexican national team hosted Iceland for a scheduled preparation friendly in Queretaro as normal. The 4 – 0 victory by the hosts helped ease the tension for many fans after a few difficult days in the country.
FIFA Emperor Gianni Infantino publicly spoke out in favor of Mexico and its preparations for the tournament, and reiterated that he and FIFA have “complete confidence” in Mexico and President Claudia Sheinbaum.
Did some of you truly believe that the D-level 007 villain would give up the bag that easily?
Recently, the Mexican federal government unveiled the Plan Kukulkán security plan for the tournament. The plan will utilize nearly 100,000 members of the military, police and private security for the protection of host cities Guadalajara, Monterrey and Mexico City.
SOURCES: El País, Inside World Football, La Jornada
Will Iran Still Play In The Tournament?
Iran was the first national team to qualify for the tournament and is scheduled to play two games in Los Angeles (June 15 vs New Zealand, June 21 vs Belgium) and a third in Seattle (June 26 vs Egypt). But will they show up?
As of this writing, it’s been eight days since Israel and the U.S. began its regime change bombing campaign / war. Soccer is the last thing on anyone’s mind right now, but as time goes on, the inevitable elephant in the room will be impossible to avoid.
So: will the Iranian national team still compete in the World Cup? The answer at this moment is “maybe.” They may drop out of the tournament depending on the length of the assault on their home nation. If they do compete, visa restrictions may affect the team and its fans.
Mehdi Taj, president of Iran’s soccer federation, said that the team and the Iranian people can’t “be expected to look forward to the World Cup with hope.”
Will Iraq Play Its Qualifying Match?
There are currently 22 teams scheduled to play the final set of qualifying matches to compete for the six spots still left in the tournament. Six national teams will compete in Guadalajara and Monterrey for two of those spots, including Bolivia, Congo DR, Iraq, Jamaica, New Caledonia and Suriname.
Iraq, unfortunately, may not attend the qualifying match at the end of the month in Guadalajara. Airspace in the country remains closed and the grounding of flights will keep almost half the team and staff unable to travel. There are also issues with many players still unable to secure visas for both Mexico and the U.S.
Iraq is scheduled to play the winner between Bolivia and Suriname on March 30. Will the team have its game rescheduled at a different venue? Will the team drop out and be replaced with another nation? Or will FIFA allow both Bolivia and Suriname to qualify automatically if Iraq drops out?
SOURCES: FIFA, The Guardian
