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IS GERMANY OUT? THE TRUTH BEHIND THE 2026 WORLD CUP BOYCOTT THREATS

German FA Vice President Oke Göttlich urges Europe to discuss a 2026 World Cup boycott in response to President Trump's policies.

Is Germany Out? The Truth Behind the 2026 World Cup Boycott Threats
St. Pauli President Slams FIFA’s Apolitical Stance on Human Rights

A top German football official is calling on Europe to think seriously about boycotting the 2026 FIFA World Cup. He’s worried about President Trump’s recent talk about Greenland and his aggressive foreign policies, which have left a lot of people in Europe uneasy.

Oke Göttlich, who runs the Bundesliga club St. Pauli and also serves as a vice president of the German Football Association, told German media it’s time to actually sit down and talk about a boycott. He compared the situation now to the Olympic boycotts back in the Cold War days.

“What were the reasons for those Olympic boycotts in the 1980s? “Göttlich asked the Hamburger Morgenpost. “Honestly, I think the risks are bigger now than they were back then. We need to talk about this.”

He also took a shot at FIFA President Gianni Infantino, who’s often seen as being close to Trump. Göttlich accused football’s leaders of having double standards.

“Qatar was supposedly too political for everyone, and now we’re just pretending politics don’t exist?” he said. “That really gets to me.”

His comments have added fuel to the ongoing debate in Europe: can global sports really stay out of politics, especially now, when Trump keeps turning up the heat on allies—from his threats about Greenland to talk of military action in Venezuela—and treats the World Cup as a kind of political trophy for his next term?

Not everyone in government is on board. France’s sports minister said this week that Paris has “no desire” to boycott the tournament, which the U.S., Canada, and Mexico will co-host. She believes sports and politics should stay separate.

Still, some football leaders in Europe aren’t shying away from political issues. Norway’s federation president, Lise Klaveness, has spoken out about human rights problems connected to major tournaments. Ireland’s football association even pushed to ban Israel from international competition before last year’s Gaza peace deal.

Göttlich also brushed aside the idea that a boycott would be unfair to players, including St. Pauli’s own international stars.

“The life of a professional footballer isn’t worth more than the lives of countless people in different regions who are being attacked or threatened by the World Cup host, whether directly or not,” he said.

CRISTIANO RONALDO PROTESTS AL-HILAL'S BENZEMA DEAL BY SKIPPING AL-NASSR LEAGUE MATCH

Cristiano Ronaldo is fuming. Discover why the Al-Nassr star skipped his last match and is now threatening to leave Saudi Arabia.

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Ronaldo "considering leaving Saudi Arabia" despite signing 2027 contract extension

Cristiano Ronaldo has been the main attraction in the Saudi Pro League ever since he landed in the Middle East three years ago. Now, for the first time, it looks like he’s actually thinking about leaving. He’s frustrated. He feels the playing field isn’t level, and it’s starting to get to him.

Here’s the deal: Four clubs in the league—Al-Ittihad, Al-Nassr, Al-Hilal, and Al-Ahli—get their backing straight from the state. But Ronaldo sat out Al-Nassr’s match against Al-Riyadh on Monday night. Why? He was protesting. He found out Al-Hilal was about to sign Karim Benzema from Al-Ittihad, and that was the last straw. From Ronaldo’s perspective, Al-Hilal keeps getting more freedom to splash cash than everyone else. They’re the current champions, and Ronaldo still hasn’t managed to win his first Saudi title.

Saudi officials tried to calm him down. According to Diario AS, they reached out and argued that most of Al-Hilal’s extra spending comes from Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal, not the Public Investment Fund (PIF). Al-Hilal just brought in Kader Meite for €30 million, Saimon Bouabre for €23 million, and now Benzema. Al-Nassr, on the other hand, only managed two free transfers this winter. Sure, they spent a lot more in the summer, but that didn’t seem to matter to Ronaldo.

Reports from Portugal, cited by AS, say Ronaldo’s not ruling anything out—not even leaving Saudi Arabia this summer. That’s despite just signing an extension with Al-Nassr until 2027.

And honestly, he has a point. Since he arrived, Al-Hilal have spent €647 million, while Al-Nassr have shelled out €410 million and Al-Ittihad €365 million. These numbers probably don’t include salaries—and let’s face it, nobody’s making more than Ronaldo. He’s supposed to return on Friday when Al-Nassr face Al-Ittihad, but right now, no one really knows if he’ll play or if he’s planning his next move.

N’GOLO KANTE SKIPS TRAINING AS AL-ITTIHAD BLOCK HIS MOVE TO FENERBAHCE OFFICIALLY

N’Golo Kante has gone on strike at Al-Ittihad after a paperwork error blocked his move to Fenerbahce. Can he still sign by Friday?

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Paperwork error halts N’Golo Kante’s transfer to Turkey at final hour

N’Golo Kanté didn’t show up for Al-Ittihad training on Tuesday, and it’s not hard to see why. He was all set to head to Fenerbahçe, but the deal fell apart at the last minute—apparently because Al-Ittihad messed up some paperwork. Kante was supposed to fly to Istanbul and sign, but thanks to this administrative slip, he’s stuck in limbo. There’s still a shot at reviving the transfer sinceKanté Turkey’s transfer window stays open until Friday, February 6.

Kante was one of the first big European names to jump to the Saudi Pro League, joining Al-Ittihad in 2023 after seven years with Chelsea. He’s been a key player in Jeddah, helping Al-Ittihad win the 2024-25 league title and the King’s Cup.

Then, in the middle of the January window, word got out that Fenerbahce wanted him. The Turkish club were eager to add a World Cup winner to their squad. The plan was to swap Kante for Youssef En-Nesyri, who’d head to Saudi Arabia. Everything seemed set until deadline day, when news broke that an error by Al-Ittihad in the Transfer Matching System stopped the transfer cold.

Fenerbahce didn’t hold back. They blamed Al-Ittihad directly, saying they’d done everything right: agreements with the players, medicals, paperwork, all wrapped up on time. But Al-Ittihad entered something wrong in the system, and that was that. Fenerbahçe even asked for an extension and reached out to FIFA, but nothing moved. In the end, the deal died, and Fenerbahçe put out a statement saying they understood the frustration and would keep working to strengthen the squad.

Meanwhile, Kante’s making his feelings clear. According to Ben Jacobs, he skipped training on Tuesday, still hoping the move to Fenerbahce can happen. Santi Aouna says talks between the clubs aren’t dead yet. L’Equipe is reporting that Kanté doesn’t want to play for Al-Ittihad while he waits for FIFA’s decision. With the Turkish window open until Friday, there’s still a glimmer of hope for Kante, though En-Nesyri’s move is off the table for now.

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