Featured Image Credit: Getty
Topics: FIFA, USA, Football, FIFA World Cup
Rory O'Callaghan
FIFA is facing calls to strip the United States of the right to host the 2026 World Cup over safety fears in the wake of the death of Charlie Kirk.
Conservative activist Kirk was shot and killed during an appearance at Utah Valley University (UVU) on Wednesday at the age of 31.
Kirk was responding to a question about gun violence when he was shot around 12:20 local time. He was taken to hospital but later died, with US President Donald Trump announcing his death on social media.
Utah police confirmed two suspects had been taken into custody after the shooting but were subsequently released, with a manhunt still underway.
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The shooting comes amid an increased level of violence related to political disagreements in the US. Trump himself was shot in an assassination attempt in July, while another alleged attempt on his life was made at his West Palm Beach golf course in September.
Ryan Wesley Routh, 59, is accused of attempting to kill the President, with his trial in Florida starting this week.
Nearly 47,000 people died of gun-related injuries in the United States in 2023, according to the latest available statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
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Kirk's death has reignited the debate over gun control in the US and whether the country can guarantee the safety of supporters travelling to the 2026 World Cup, which it will co-host with neighbouring Canada and Mexico.
Some football fans on social media have demanded that football's world governing body FIFA strip the US of hosting rights.
One fan posted on X: "The World Cup can never be hosted in America. How will they handle the safety of both players and supporters?"
While another wrote: "How can you have a World Cup in that country? Seriously."
FIFA has given no indication that it plans to prevent the US co-hosting the World Cup.
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After a fatal shooting at Kansas City Chiefs' Super Bowl celebrations last year, a FIFA spokesperson told The Athletic the governing body was working to ensure the "best" standards of safety would be in place for the World Cup.
"Fan and player safety and security is an essential part of the overall operations of the FIFA World Cup," the spokesperson said.
"We continue to work closely with Federal, state, tribal and municipal authorities, along with the host city committees, to set the best safety and security standards for the tournament in 2026."
After violent protests against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) policies broke out in World Cup host city Los Angeles in June, FIFA president Gianni Infantino - who has a close relationship with Trump - moved to ease fans' concerns about the World Cup.
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"No, I don’t have any concerns about anything in the sense that we are very attentive on any security question," he said.
"Of course, the most important for us is to guarantee security for all the fans who come to the games. This is our priority. This is the priority of all the authorities who are here.
"And we want everyone who comes to the games to pass a good moment."
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SPORTbible has reached out to FIFA for comment.
FIFA has never stripped hosting rights from a country for the World Cup. However, there have been two notable occasions where original host nations have been removed for an international FIFA tournament.
Colombia was originally awarded the 1986 World Cup but, four years before the tournament, it informed FIFA it could not meet the infrastructure and financial demands required. FIFA subsequently reassigned the tournament to Mexico, which hosted instead.
Meanwhile, Indonesia were removed as hosts for the FIFA U20 World Cup in 2023. The decision was taken after the Indonesian football federation (PSSI) said it had cancelled the tournament draw because the governor of Bali had refused to host Israel.