"Last week, Mauricio Pochettino began a World Cup year with an unforced error. At the tail-end of a virtual press conference that covered a wide range of ongoing USMNT business, the 53-year-old Argentine who has made himself commendably available to the American soccer press was asked about recent comments by Tim Weah. The Olympique Marseille winger, already the holder of 47 US caps at age 25, had recently spoken to French regional newspaper Le Dauphine Libere about a range of topics and was lauded by the publication for his lucidity, maturity and frankness during the interview."
"Among the subjects: the 2026 World Cup, to be co-hosted by the US, Mexico and Canada this summer. I am just a bit disappointed by the ticket prices, Weah said. Lots of real fans will miss matches. It is too expensive, he added. Football should still be enjoyed by everyone. Pochettino plainly did not appreciate Weah wading into the affordability discourse that has become one of the dominant topics of this World Cup along with, you know, all the rest of it."
"I think players need to talk on the pitch, playing football, not outside, Pochettino said. It is not his duty to evaluate the price of the ticket We are not politicians. We are sport people that only we can talk about our job. The antediluvian stick-to-sports take rankled, in no small part because Weah wasn't talking about politics. He was a soccer player commenting on an extremely soccer-related matter. The ability for people from any economic class to be able to come and watch Tim Weah play in a World Cup is inarguably something that relates to his job."
Mauricio Pochettino criticized Tim Weah for commenting on World Cup ticket prices after Weah warned that high costs would prevent many real fans from attending. Weah noted that football should be accessible to everyone and expressed disappointment about ticket affordability for the 2026 tournament. Pochettino said players should focus on playing on the pitch and insisted they are not politicians and should not evaluate ticket prices. The criticism was seen as an outdated stick-to-sports stance because Weah's comments directly relate to his ability to perform before fans. The men's national team has grown more outspoken in recent years, and the Be The Change campaign received support from the federation and Gregg Berhalter.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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