Former Fifa president Sepp Blatter on Monday suggested he supports fans boycotting World Cup matches in the United States this year due to security concerns.
Blatter gave his support to comments from Swiss anti-corruption lawyer Mark Pieth, who worked with Fifa on potential reforms when Blatter was president, saying fans should stay away from the US for the tournament.
“I think Mark Pieth is right to question this World Cup,” Blatter said on social media.
Pieth cited the killing of protester Renee Good by an American immigration agent in Minneapolis earlier this month as one reason for supporters not to travel to the US. Blatter’s endorsement of Pieth’s comments comes in the wake of the death of a second US citizen, Alex Pretti, last weekend.
56 Comments
MushuChupacabra@lemmy.world · 156 pts · 201d
Too fucked up and corrupt for Sepp Blatter.
For Sepp Blatter.
zd9@lemmy.world · 50 pts · 201d
I had to double check if this source was from The Onion lol
dethedrus@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 17 pts · 201d
Too evil for that evil motherfucker.
Impressive.
bonenode@piefed.social · 12 pts · 200d
cabillaud@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 201d
MushuChupacabra@lemmy.world · 4 pts · 200d
Even if he slips into severe dementia, his bribe-seeking reflex will remain intact.
HeyThisIsntTheYMCA@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 200d
Forcep bladder Heh.
czl@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 74 pts · 201d
Even a scumbag corrupt clock is right twice a day.
Critical_Drinking@lemmy.world · 25 pts · 201d
He is just jealous that someone else sits at the trough.
AlexLost@lemmy.world · 10 pts · 201d
Nah, that shit is get in and get out with a bag quick. Don't want to get caught with all that loot when shit goes down.
Tollana1234567@lemmy.today · 5 pts · 200d
hes mad hes not more corrupt than infantino who gave "jerk off prize" to trump
plyth@feddit.org · 2 pts · 200d
It could be deeper. Some people argue that the Fifa investigation that made Blatter resign were triggered by the US in retaliation for giving Russia the world cup before the US.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2018_FIFA_World_Cup (not a proof of my statement)
FlashMobOfOne@lemmy.world · 70 pts · 201d
The World Cup is happening in my city, and today, I'm seeing stories about ICE pulling cars over and arresting people indiscrimately.
Do not come to Kansas City.
W3dd1e@lemmy.zip · 23 pts · 201d
Hello fellow KC citizen!
I’m in the Northland and the Clay County Sheriff had the gall to say he wasn’t aware of any ICE activity and the pictures were probably fake bc the SUVs didn’t look like law enforcement cars and the agents didn’t have matching uniforms.
Bro. Have you even looked at the news? We’re lucky if they even state they are “law enforcement” at all? I don’t trust anything the Clay County Sheriff says.
EDIT- apparently I’ve already run into you on Lemmy bc I already had you tagged as a local, lol. So hello again!
FlashMobOfOne@lemmy.world · 11 pts · 201d
Ah, hello.
Yes, it's bleak. Most of what I'm seeing happening is being reported out via social media by local mutuals and activist organizations, but I have no doubt ICE is up to their fuckery here to some extent.
h0rnman@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 8 pts · 200d
As another KC resident, I'll second this sentiment.... there is nothing happening here worth the risk
HeyThisIsntTheYMCA@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 200d
Ty. I am not planning on traveling, but it's nice to know. I guess I should start making a "not safe" list
hddsx@lemmy.ca · 45 pts · 201d
It is so strange to agree with Sepp Blatter.
Kjell@lemmy.world · 17 pts · 201d
We thought Blatter was the worst possible Fifa president we could have. And then we got Infantino.
Kazumara@discuss.tchncs.de · 27 pts · 201d
Wow I didn't know he had the capacity to ever be correct in anything!
Taldan@lemmy.world · 15 pts · 201d
Most of them do
That's what I hate most about them. They know right from wrong, they're just willing to ignore that while they're getting money and power from it
He could have made real, positive change when he was the head of FIFA. Instead he helped shape FIFA into the corrupt organization of today. It's only once he's out that he's willing to say what's right
boydster@sh.itjust.works · 14 pts · 201d
Reminds me of that old Upton Sinclair line, "It is difficult to get a man to understand something, when his salary depends on his not understanding it."
Tollana1234567@lemmy.today · 1 pts · 200d
someone pumped him full adderall just for the statement, then he goes back to his "nursing home" SEDATED,
W3dd1e@lemmy.zip · 25 pts · 201d
No one should travel here for the World Cup.
How many players are going to get nabbed by ICE due to the color of their skin or their accent?
ragas@lemmy.ml · 4 pts · 200d
Imagine a game Brasil against Spain or something. ICE will just lock up the whole stadium and declare everyone in it an illegal immigrant.
Lemmyoutofhere@lemmy.ca · 24 pts · 201d
Sepp Blatter suggestsfans should not travel to USfor World Cupwuffah@lemmy.world · 22 pts · 201d
If they’re murdering white US citizens in the street for demonstrating and resisting illegal arrest, imagine what they would do to brown tourists.
Tollana1234567@lemmy.today · 3 pts · 200d
they are also likely raping women in thier custody, and in the concentration camps, that isnt being blasted on the news.
Photonic@lemmy.world · 17 pts · 201d
Took him 89 years, but he finally got something right
TrivialBetaState@sopuli.xyz · 14 pts · 201d
That's strange. I thought FIFA had presented Donald Trump with his Big Beautiful Peace Prize. I am getting confusing messages here.
jonne@infosec.pub · 18 pts · 201d
Blatter doesn't run FIFA any more. And was fine with Russia and Qatar having the world cup, so I'm guessing the principles arrived when he retired.
Tollana1234567@lemmy.today · 5 pts · 200d
the current head is Infantino, hes even more corrupt.
Endymion_Mallorn@kbin.melroy.org · 12 pts · 201d
As someone in New Jersey (right near the stadium), I agree. Admittedly, I would be saying that you shouldn't come here even if things were great because I don't want the added traffic and further delays on NJTransit. But with the fact that there's a potential risk, absolutely - do not come.
archonet@lemy.lol · 13 pts · 201d
I'm in Pennsylvania and I couldn't agree more. Do not come here -- not just because the personal risk to a foreigner is incredibly high right now, but also because tourism is money and money is the only language these shitstains in office speak.
jj4211@lemmy.world · 12 pts · 201d
I have a number of colleagues in Europe that normally I occasionally see. Since ICE ramped up last year, none of them have set foot on American soil at all. No one wants to risk even legally being in this mess.
FreshParsnip@lemmy.ca · 2 pts · 200d
I know some Canadian idiots still going there
Tollana1234567@lemmy.today · 2 pts · 200d
are they rich A-holes or from alberta?
Tollana1234567@lemmy.today · 1 pts · 200d
the first sign was trump harrassing and detaining foreigners, but that seemed to have dropped off the face of conservative owned MSMs(likely it was hurting GOP-states tourism business alot) coincidentally msm also stopped reporting on how bad tourism is doing in GOP controlled states.
baatliwala@lemmy.world · 11 pts · 200d
Sepp Blatter was corrupt but he genuinely was in for the love of the game. Infantino is even worse.
ragas@lemmy.ml · 11 pts · 200d
Meh, its easy to say the right thing when your billions of dollars don't depend on it any more.
baatliwala@lemmy.world · 4 pts · 200d
No I mean he also really wanted to promote football across cultures and invest into poor nations to grow the sport. FWIW he was insanely corrupt but also somehow an improvement on Havelange.
For Infantino that is more of a side to the side quest. He has done absolutely nothing for football.
zd9@lemmy.world · 9 pts · 201d
Man, this summer is going to be HOT. More people come out to protest when it's warm + tons and tons of foreign nationals for the World Cup + lead up to midterms = crazy shit. This summer is going to be history, not in a good way.
Flauschige_Lemmata@lemmy.world · 9 pts · 201d
Did they stop paying his bribes or something?
ragas@lemmy.ml · 3 pts · 200d
Of course! He already got his golden parachute. Nobody cares what he says any more.
frongt@lemmy.zip · 1 pts · 200d
He's not in charge of FIFA any more.
Sharkticon@lemmy.zip · 8 pts · 201d
Oddly good advice from him. The Administration has already said they'll be targeting people that come to this. Why you'd come put yourself in danger I do not know.
hOrni@lemmy.world · 8 pts · 201d
Just in case You weren't aware of how bad it is right now, this.
HeyThisIsntTheYMCA@lemmy.world · 6 pts · 200d
What, giving Krasnov a bullshit award didn't work?
TheEighthDoctor@lemmy.zip · 4 pts · 200d
That wasn't Blatter it was Infantino, Blatter is suspended for corruption.
HeyThisIsntTheYMCA@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 200d
fifa's fifa
plyth@feddit.org · 5 pts · 200d
Every country is cleaning their streets off homeless people before a world cup or olympic games. The US is just a bit more generous with their definition of homelessness. Everything will be fine when the tourists arrive.
/s
adespoton@lemmy.ca · 5 pts · 200d
World Cup 2026 events are also happening in Canada. The expanse of the US without the extrajudicial killings and concentration camps.
Tollana1234567@lemmy.today · 2 pts · 200d
plus all the rape getting undocumenting on the concentration and camp and several "potential SA" caught and uploaded on social media too
FreshParsnip@lemmy.ca · 4 pts · 201d
A part of me thinks absolutely nothing will happen at the world cup and the nazis will relax their usual terror tactics just because it's the world cup. A part of me thinks the world cup will be a shitshiw with fans and players being arrested or killed in the middle of, or before and after, games
Slashme@lemmy.world · 4 pts · 200d
Nazi Germany successfully held the Olympics, so I'm sure they'll get ICE to chill during the world cup.
RoidingOldMan@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 201d
People within the USA generally do not know what the world cup is. I don't expect any preferential treatment.
adespoton@lemmy.ca · 2 pts · 200d
ICE: “World Cup? Sounds foreign.”
CallMeAnAI@lemmy.world · 4 pts · 201d
I think they should, and start some shit with ice.