FIFA says President Donald Trump cannot change location of World Cup matches

Montagliani made the comments to an audience at The Summit, part of Leaders Week London. The Canadian was clear in his message to the Whitehouse; they have no jurisdiction over which cities will host games in the 2026 World Cup. 

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

The 2026 World Cup will be hosted jointly between Canada, the U.S. and Mexico. 

The Trump administration has pursued a number of policies which could cause issues for  football's governing body. Montagliani was specifically responding to comments Trump made last week about San Francisco and Seattle. At a news conference in the Oval Office, Trump was asked about safety ahead in those cities ahead of the World Cup. 

Trump said, "It will be safe for the World Cup. If I think it isn't safe, we'll move it to a different city. If any city we think is going to be even a little bit dangerous for the World Cup, or for the Olympics, but for the World Cup in particular, because they're playing in so many cities, we won't allow it to go. We'll move it around a little bit." 

The majority of the tournament's fixtures will be held in the U.S., with 78 of the 104 games, including the final, played across 11 host cities: Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Houston, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Miami, New York/New Jersey, Philadelphia, San Francisco and Seattle. 

Seattle and San Francisco will host six games during the tournament, with Los Angeles hosting eight fixtures. 

The comments come as the latest intervention from Trump ahead of FIFA's marquee event. In March, he claimed the political and economic tensions between the US and its co-hosts Canada and Mexico would be a good thing for the tournament.

During the summer, Trump sparked headlines by inserting himself into Chelsea's celebrations after winning the Club World Cup at MetLife Stadium, the New Jersey stadium which will also host the World Cup final. 

FIFA president Gianni Infantino has enjoyed a cordial relationship with Trump since he re-took office in January of this year. It is unclear how far Trump will go in pursuing the removal of games from specific cities, or if FIFA will be willing to enter into a legal battle to protect the interests of those hosts.