Featured Image Credit: Salt Bae & Arabian Business
Topics: FIFA World Cup, Football World Cup, Argentina, Lionel Messi
Josh Lawless
Topics: FIFA World Cup, Football World Cup, Argentina, Lionel Messi
Viral chef Salt Bae has made a promise for the World Cup next year after receiving backlash for breaking rules at the 2022 showpiece in Qatar.
Nusret Gökçe, who has 52 million followers on Instagram, ended up on the pitch after the pulsating final between France and Argentina at the Lusail Stadium.
After a breathless 3-3 draw where Lionel Messi scored a brace and Kylian Mbappe bagged a hat-trick, Argentina prevailed on penalties to deliver a first World Cup since 1986.
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In the midst of the celebrations, Salt Bae was seen taking pictures with the World Cup trophy and a plethora of Argentina players.
Lisandro Martinez looked incredibly awkward when Salt Bae posed for a snap with him, while Messi ignored him on two occasions as he spent time with his family before eventually giving in and reluctantly taking a picture.
Salt Bae received huge backlash for holding and kissing the Jules Rimet trophy, as rules state that the prize, believed to be 18-carat gold and worth £17.7 million, can only be touched by a "select group of people" - namely former winners of the FIFA World Cup and heads of state.
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Salt Bae became friends with FIFA president Gianni Infantino, posting a video of the 54-year-old enjoying his steaks in Dubai and calling him a "legend" and "number one" - while he also hit back at criticism by sharing a video of Messi at his restaurant and captioning it "the champion".
But ahead of the 2026 tournament in North America, Infantino has apologised and pledged not to repeat his actions - which led to an internal review from FIFA.
Speaking to Arabian Business, Salt Bae said: "I love Argentina, I love football. and this is an accident. My mistake. Before I don't know the rules, now I know the rules.
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"Some people loved it and some didn't like but it doesn't matter. You must follow the rules. Next World Cup, I'll never touch the World Cup.
"I'll go of course to the stadium to see the match but I will never touch again."
Following on from the controversy, Salt Bae was banned from the US Open - the oldest football tournament in America.
The next World Cup, the first to feature 48 teams, will be staged in the United States, Canada and Mexico from June to July.