Topics: FIFA, FIFA World Cup, Gianni Infantino, Football
FIFA president Gianni Infantino has issued a statement on the potential relocation of 2026 World Cup matches due to be held in Mexico.
Mexico are one of three co-hosts for the tournament, alongside United States and Canada.
The nation is set to host matches across three of the 12 groups, with Mexico themselves playing all three matches in home stadiums.
The tournament is due to kick off in Mexico City on June 11, with Mexico taking on South Africa in a repeat of the 2010 opener.
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But concerns have developed in recent weeks over ongoing gang-related violence in several Mexican cities, including Guadalajara.
Zapopan, a city in Guadalajara, will host four group matches at the World Cup, including two Mexico fixtures and Uruguay versus Spain.
On Sunday, 'El Mencho', the co-founder and leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) - the most powerful criminal organisation in Mexico - was killed in a security operation.
He was gravely injured in what is being described as a firefight between his bodyguards and deployed military commandos who had been assigned to capture him.
The killing of the drug lord, full name Nemesio Oseguera-Cervantes, sparked spates of gang-related violence across cities in Mexico, including Guadalajara.
Members of the CJNG launched reliatatory attacks across 20 Mexican states on Saturday, as per BBC.
They torched vehicles and local businesses, threw nails and spikes into the tarmac to block roads, and forced local authorities to issue a stay-at-home order.
Naturally, the violence has sparked concerns over the prospect of World Cup matches being hosted across Mexico.
As per The Athletic, a spokesperson for FIFA in Mexico stated that they are 'closely monitoring the situation in Jalisco' and 'remain in constant communication with the authorities'.
A separate spokesperson for FIFA said: "Safety and security remain the top priority, and FIFA has full confidence in all three host countries."
Now, FIFA president Gianni Infantino has released his own statement, confirming that he is 'not worried' about the gang-related violence in Mexico and that he has 'full confidence' in the matches going ahead as planned.
"No, not worried," he told Diario AS. "We are looking very carefully at what is happening in Mexico.
"We are in contact with the presidency, with the authorities, and we have full confidence that everything will go very well: the playoff and then the World Cup. It will be a celebration."
In a separate answer about keeping politics separate from football, Infantino said: "It is possible, it has to be possible.
"We don't do politics, we do football and we support everything good that football can do - unite countries, unite the world, help children, help peace - and clearly we have to have contacts and interactions with the leaders of this world and try to do something for the youth."
