A German politician has suggested that the German national team could boycott the 2026 World Cup, held in the United States, Canada and Mexico, “as a last resort in order to get [President Donald] Trump to see sense on the Greenland issue.”
Jürgen Hardt, who works as a spokesperson on foreign policy for the Christian Democratic Union party, made the claim on his own to BILD. He was not publicly backed by Sports Minister Christiane Schenderline, also from the CDU, who said that the German Football Federation (DFB) and FIFA, as "the responsible associations,” should field inquiries.
Germany, a prominent NATO member alongside Denmark, the nation to which Greenland belongs, has sent military personnel to the nordic island, alongside France and several other European nations.
Trump, meanwhile, has increased his rhetoric on adding Greenland to the United States, suggesting that “we need Greenland for national security” and that he may impose stricter tariffs on nations “if they don’t go along with [the plan for] Greenland.”
While speaking with BILD, Hardt also pointed out that Trump has made it evidently clear how “important the World Cup is to him,” and expressed that he has “confidence that we will reach a better common understanding within NATO regarding the Greenland issue.”
Polling conducted by BILD before Trump’s latest threats revealed significant support for a German World Cup boycott, with 47% of Germans in favor and just 35% against if the U.S. took control of Greenland.
Germany qualified for the 2026 tournament after claiming the top spot in Group A of UEFA World Cup qualifying and will play against Curaçao, Côte d’Ivoire and Ecuador in the group stage, with those matches set to take place in Houston and East Rutherford, New Jersey, as well as Toronto, Canada.
Germany's High Demand for World Cup Tickets
Hardt’s concerns about the 2026 World Cup have not dampened excitement for the tournament in Germany. On Jan. 14, FIFA announced that it received over 500 million ticket requests for the tournament, with Germany ranking fourth among countries seeking entry to matches, only trailing the three host nations.
However, no Germany group stage games were included in the most in-demand matchups, which included Mexico vs. South Korea, Mexico vs. South Africa, the Round of 32 match in Toronto and the World Cup final in New Jersey.
World Cup boycotts have not been common. However, Iran boycotted the 2026 World Cup draw on Dec. 5, 2025, citing visa restrictions for its officials.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as ‘Last Resort’—German Politician Suggests World Cup Boycott Over Greenland Issue.
