The CureThe Cure frontman Robert Smith took to social media on Friday (17 July) to say he is not a fan of FIFA President Gianni Infantino, nor does he like the idea of a Halftime Show during the FIFA World Cup Final.
In an Instagram post, where he shared his thoughts about Infantino and the Halftime Show, Smith wrote, “The half-time show, which has been curated by Coldplay’s Chris Martin, will feature Madonna, Justin Bieber, Shakira and the K‑pop boyband BTS.”
He continued, “Fifa’s president, Gianni Infantosser, has described the half-time show as ‘groundbreaking spectacle’ that will ‘celebrate football, music and our shared values, ensuring a legacy that transcends the final whistle.’ AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH… #Breadandcircuses #MUGWANK #pleasejustfuckoff.”
In a follow-up post, Smith clarified that he wasn’t criticising Martin or the performers, but that he’s against the “#MUGWANK I D E A” of a FIFA World Cup Halftime Show, and expressed disappointment that Infantino and US President Donald Trump will present the winners’ trophy to the winning country of the tournament.
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“sigh… FOR THOSE OF US NOT QUITE GETTING IT: THE POINT IS NOT R E A L L Y ABOUT W H O IS CURATING OR PERFORMING, IT IS ABOUT THE #MUGWANK I D E A OF A FOOTBALL WORLD CUP FINAL HALF TIME SHOW,” Smith wrote.
His post continued, “IF YOU NOW UNDERSTAND MY ‘AAAAAAAGH!’ A BIT BETTER, BUT STILL DON’T AGREE, PLEASE ADJUST YOUR RED CAP, YOUR ‘I 🖤 JANNY + DONNY + $$$’ TSHIRT AND… KNOCK YOURSELF OUT? ONWARDS… RSX
“PS. “Infantosser has said he and US president Trumpton will small hand over trophy on Sunday”. SADLY, THERE ARE NOT ENOUGH A’S LEFT FOR THE ‘ARGH’ THAT SHOULD FOLLOW… #breadandcircuses #pleasejustfuckoff #fuckfifa #justlookup lostworld”.
You can see both posts below.
Spain and Argentina will battle it out for the FIFA World Cup on Sunday, 19 July. The day before, England and France will compete to secure third place in the competition.
In other Robert Smith news, The Cure frontman appeared on just-released albums by The Rolling Stones and Olivia Rodrigo.
In November 2024, The Cure released their first album in 16 years, the excellent Songs of a Lost World. A few months after the album’s release, Smith spoke to John Kennedy of the UK’s Radio X for a track-by-track breakdown of Songs of a Lost World.
During the interview, Smith explained that some of the material that hadn’t initially made the cut for 2008’s 4:13 Dream is likely to appear on a forthcoming album.
“It has a couple of songs that we were playing live which didn’t make it onto Songs of a Lost World, and it has some completely new stuff that no one’s ever heard,” he said. “There’s three songs on it, which are slower than pretty much anything on this album. So, I don’t know, it may well end up being heavier than this one.”
