USAT’s Safid Deen breaks down how many World Cup tickets can be purchased at face value for soccer fans.
Sports Pulse
President Donald Trump says he has the authority to “take away” 2026 World Cup soccer matches scheduled in Boston if he feels the city is unsafe.
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Suggesting that parts of Boston had been “taken over” by recent unrest, Trump criticized mayor Michelle Wu and said on Tuesday, Oct. 14, that Boston – which is set to stage seven matches at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough during next summer’s tournament – could have its games relocated with a phone call to FIFA president Gianni Infantino.
“If somebody is doing a bad job, and if I feel there’s unsafe conditions, I would call Gianni – the head of FIFA who’s phenomenal – and I would say, ‘Let’s move into another location,’ and they would do that,” Trump said. “He wouldn’t love to do it, but he’d do it very easily.”
Trump’s remarks came during a White House appearance with Argentine President Javier Milei, days after Boston police reported multiple arrests tied to a late-night street gathering that turned violent.
Boston was one of 11 U.S. cities, along with three in Mexico and two in Canada, selected three years ago to host matches for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Making changes to plans already in place just eight months before the tournament kicks off June 11 would create severe logistical hurdles.
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“We could take them away,” Trump said. “I love the people of Boston, and I know the games are sold out. But your mayor is not good.”
Wu’s office issued a statement that read: “Boston is honored and excited to host World Cup matches, and we look forward to welcoming fans from around the world to our beautiful city, the cradle of liberty and city of champions.”
Trump also suggested that he would consider moving the 2028 Summer Olympics out of Los Angeles for similar reasons.
“If I thought L.A. was not going to be prepared properly, I would move it to another location if I had to.”
The ACC has released the Initial Availability Report for Boston College and Georgia Tech two days ahead of their matchup.
At the moment, Georgia Tech has one player listed as out in long snapper Will Benton IV.
Boston College, on the other hand, will be down multiple players.
The players listed out are linebacker Daveon Crouch, wide receiver Jaedn Skeete, wide receiver Johnathan Montague Jr., linebacker Jaylen Blackwell, defensive back Syair Torrence, defensive back Marcelous Townsend, defensive back Cameron Martinez, wide receiver Will Graves III, defensive lineman Micah Amedee, wide receiver Bryce Dopson, tight end Danny Edgehille, defensive lineman Ty Clemons, defensive lineman Onye Nwosisi, defensive tackle Owen Stoudmire, and defensive lineman Chuck Nnaeto.
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The Eagles also have one player placed as questionable and seven as probable.
The questionable player is defensive back Amari Jackson and the probable players include defensive back Omar Thornton, defensive back Max Tucker, defensive back TJ Green, defensive back Ashton McShane, defensive lineman E’Lla Boykin, offensive lineman Michael Crounse, and wide receiver Cedric Lott Jr.
Boston College head coach Bill O’Brien shared after practice on Thursday morning that Skeete was out for the season after suffering a shoulder injury in practice after the Notre Dame game, but is expecting to return to the program next season.
“No, he won’t be back,” said O’Brien. “He hurt his shoulder in practice the week after the Notre Dame game. But he’ll be back. I would tell you that he won’t be back this year, but I would anticipate him being back next year.”
In October, O’Brien shared that Torrence, Skeete, and Crouch were out for the season. Crouch and Skeete did end up returning for BC’s 25-10 loss to Notre Dame on Nov. 1, but have not played since.
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”No Bam [Crouch], I don’t think Bam will be able to return,” said O’Brien on Oct. 21. “Skeete won’t be able to return. Amari might. Amari might, not this game. Syair no, out for the season. There’s others, but yeah. [Jude] Bowry will be back. [Eryx] Daugherty won’t play in this game. So yeah, but there’s probably others. That’s off the top of my head.”
The conference will release an updated Availability Report on Friday and a final one on Saturday prior to kickoff.
A woman out for a run along the Charles in Boston couldn’t believe her eyes on Tuesday morning — floating on the water was a little reptile.
“I looked a little bit closer and I was like, ‘Oh my gosh! That’s a baby alligator!” Whitney Lieberman told NBC10 Boston.
She took some video of the animal encounter, just a crawl away from the Hatch Memorial Shell along the Esplanade.
“I was so caught off guard that I didn’t think to grab anyone else and say is anyone else seeing what I’m seeing here,” Lieberman said.
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Animal educator Joseph Kenney, of Joe’s Crazzy Critters, said the video does show an American alligator, and said it’s not dangerous, though the cold weather in Boston is dangerous to the animal.
And after he spoke to us, Kenney went out to find the gator.
“Actually in that same area — you guys had sent me the location after we spoke — he was tucked into some reeds, kind of along the edge there, in about a foot-and-a-half of water,” Kenney said. “He was just tucked in and laying on the bottom.”
In his social media post, Kenney explained that it took him just 15 minutes to locate the animal.
“With some luck and a couple of bright flashlights after 15 minutes I found the Boston alligator. I was able to capture him safely and he will be warm and housed until we get more information and instructions on what’s next for this little guy,” he wrote.
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MassWildlife told Boston.com that they’d seen videos of the alligator and were working with other agencies to catch it before the cold does.
A man sustained life-threatening injuries after being shot in Dorchester Tuesday afternoon, Boston Police said.
Officers went to 77 Bowdoin Ave. at 3:15 p.m. for a report of a person shot, said Sgt. Det. John Boyle, the department’s chief spokesman. At the scene, police found a man had been shot and took him to a hospital.
The man’s injuries were initially believed to be non-life-threatening, but police later said his injuries were more severe.
Homicide detectives were called to the scene, Boyle said.
The shooting remains under investigation and no arrests have been made, Boyle said.
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Charlie McKenna is a reporter on the public safety team at MassLive. Based in Boston, he covers the entire state. Before joining MassLive, McKenna worked for The Daily Item, where he covered Saugus, and on The…
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