Another call to boycott the 2026 World Cup over Trump

With less than five months to go until the 2026 World Cup kicks off, calls to boycott the tournament continue to grow, driven by geopolitical developments under Donald Trump’s administration, particularly restrictions affecting immigrants from several countries.

In Germany, a politician suggested that the national team should not attend. Piers Morgan has taken a similar stance. The latest boycott proposal has come from the Netherlands.

Teun van de Keuken, a well-known television producer in the country, has urged the Dutch national team to withdraw from the tournament. His online petition has now surpassed 130,000 signatures.

“We do not want our footballers, through their performances at the tournament, to implicitly support the policy of violent terrorism pursued by President Donald Trump against innocent immigrants, whether or not they hold a US passport,” the petition states.

In an interview with DW, an international broadcaster funded by the German federal budget, Van de Keuken added: “From a moral point of view, I believe we should not be there. It will probably be a horrible World Cup.”

Trump is a threat

For now, the Dutch Football Association has no plans to withdraw from the World Cup. However, its president, Frank Paauw, said that Trump represents a real threat to the tournament.

“As long as politics does not interfere with football, we will not interfere with politics,” Paauw said during the Photo of the Year awards ceremony in The Hague, where he presented one of the prizes.

Although the Netherlands remain set to compete at the World Cup in June, the federation acknowledged that it is “aware of geopolitical developments and is working on this together with the Dutch government.”

The presence of ICE and government actions against immigrants in cities across the United States, along with Trump’s threat to invade Greenland, are the main reasons why some in Europe are considering a boycott of the World Cup.

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