While Trump spoke, it appeared as if whenever he wanted to refer to Infantino by his first name - Gianni - the United States president called him "Johnny." It happened repeatedly, with the 79-year-old calling Infantino "Johnny" despite his name being Gianni.

The World Cup is supposed to be a soccer celebration, but fans might have second thoughts about visiting the United States if their teams play here.

In the USA, raids by masked federal agents are disappearing people, even US citizens, off the streets. Trump has antagonized and targeted co-hosts Canada and Mexico with an unnecessary and harmful tariff and border regime.

Meanwhile, Club World Cup matches are still scheduled to continue this week, with noon and 3pm kickoff times in Charlotte, Nashville, and Philadelphia.

As we head into this FIFA Club World Cup weekend in the USA, meteorologists are warning of dangerous heat and humidity up and down the east coast. Temperatures will rise through Sunday and could last all week, with a heat index of 43ºC by Monday.

These bans would directly impact World Cup participation among the Confederation of African Football nations, barring fans and supporters from Senegal, Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, Egypt, Cameroon, and Tanzania—all of which are in contention to qualify for a trip to the World Cup.

The solution is clear.

“To hold these bullies accountable, we need the world to stand with us. … If what we’re witnessing is a precursor to the World Cup, then it has never been clearer that a boycott is necessary.”

#BoycottUSA2026

Infantino has been eager to align himself with the new Trump administration. Squandering the prestige of this global tournament to launder the USA’s backslide into human rights abuses and honoring a dictator.

While ICE threatens to check visas and passports outside stadiums, the USA has issued travel bans for Iran and Venezuela, recently announcing plans to ban visitors from 36 African and Middle Eastern countries, all while engaging in hostile diplomacy on the world stage.

FIFA has made no attempt to hide its preference for working with authoritarian nations, partnering with Russia, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and now the USA to co-host the 2026 World Cup.

It's not going great.

It’s unclear what business Immigration and Customs Enforcement has providing security for an international sporting event but as we’ve seen in the past, this is an enormous risk to both tourists and citizens alike, and will lead to racial profiling and unlawful detentions.

As Natalie Stechyson writes for CBC News, there are litany of major concerns to take into account for anyone planning on visiting the USA to attend the World Cup.

Under the newly implemented travel ban, which goes into effect Monday, supporters from Iran, Venezuela, Libya, Sudan, and Haiti will be prevented from attending World Cup or Gold Cup matches. Never mind the headaches for staff or players trying to navigate the narrow exceptions to the ban.

The USA has seen an alarming rise in punitive interrogations and detentions at the border, with multiple reports of tourists being turned away or locked up for days or weeks at a time in harsh conditions over simple paperwork issues.

As @julesboykoff.bsky.social and @edgeofsports.bsky.social write for @thenation.com –

"For yourselves, for your families, stay away from the United States. As for the players, do not bring your families into the United States. Do not endanger the people you love."

The Trump administration is sending one message to the world: It is not safe to come here. The USA is not a welcoming place where Football Unites the World.

Under the new authoritarian regime, they will not hesitate to take unprecedented and illegal action to crack down on anyone.