"Stealing the Spotlight from Players"... Record Number of Controversies at World Cup

[Anchor]

The North and Central America World Cup, which concluded yesterday (July 20), was the first tournament to be expanded to a 48-nation format. While there were many moving moments, the event was plagued by constant noise until the very end. U.S. President Donald Trump faced further criticism for refusing to leave the podium even after presenting the trophy to the winning team, Spain.

Reporter Bae Jeonghun has the story.

[Reporter]

President Trump, who came down to the pitch ahead of the awards ceremony, remained unfazed despite the overwhelming boos from the crowd.

He presented the championship trophy alongside FIFA President Gianni Infantino, but for some reason, he did not step down from the podium afterward.

Even when President Infantino gestured as if to suggest he should move aside, it was to no avail.

Local media outlets criticized Trump, stating that after he exerted external pressure regarding the suspension of disciplinary action against U.S. national team player Folarin Balogun ahead of the Round of 16, he had now stolen the spotlight that should have been focused on the players.

Meanwhile, President Infantino continued to flaunt his close relationship with Trump, drawing further disapproval.

[Gianni Infantino / FIFA President: (President Trump) Without you, this World Cup would not have achieved the tremendous success it has today.]

Criticism also mounted over FIFA's failure to maintain political neutrality. A prime example was the Iranian team, which had to endure unprecedented travel restrictions, being allowed to enter the U.S. only within 24 hours of their match and forced to depart immediately after it ended.

There was also backlash that the hydration breaks, introduced under the guise of player protection, were effectively used for commercial advertisements. Furthermore, the U.S. national anthem was played at the final for the first time in history, and the halftime break, which is capped at 15 minutes by regulation, was extended to 25 minutes for performances by superstars, leading to criticism that the fundamentals of football were being undermined.

With President Infantino announcing plans to discuss expanding the tournament to 64 participating nations starting from the next event, various controversies are expected to continue.

(Video Editing: Kim Jin-won, Design: Lee So-jung)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.