Salt Bae's World Cup Appearance Sparks 'Internal Action' at FIFA
While Argentina players celebrated their stunning 2022 FIFA World Cup victory over France, the celebrity chef Salt Bae managed to get on the pitch and mingled with players, including Lionel Messi. The chef, whose real name is Nusret Gökçe, also got his hands on the World Cup trophy after Sunday's match. On Thursday, FIFA announced plans to take "appropriate internal action" to address how this breach of security happened in Qatar.
FIFA called the trophy "a priceless icon" that should only be touched and held "by a very select group of people, which includes former winners of the FIFA World Cup and heads of state," reports the Associated Press. After a review of the incident, FIFA "has been establishing how individuals gained undue access to the pitch after the closing ceremony at Lusail stadium on Dec. 18." FIFA did not share details of what the "internal action" will be.
Gökçe was regularly seen with FIFA President Gianni Infantino and made it to the pitch after Argentina's penalty shootout victory. It was Messi's first World Cup victory, and a video revealed that the last person he wanted to see after finally cementing his status as one of the greatest footballers in history was Gökçe. In one video, Gökçe is seen pulling Messi by the arm to get his attention after Messi made it obvious he didn't want anything to do with him. Gökçe managed to get a picture with Messi after the match and posted it on Instagram, but Messi looks puzzled. Gökçe shared videos of himself around other players, all of whom seemed confused about who he is.
Gökçe rose to fame in January 2017 when he became a viral star thanks to the unique way he cut meat and sprinkled salt on the food. He became known as "Salt Bae," and used his newfound popularity to open restaurants in New York, London, Dubai, and other cities around the world. Early reviews of his restaurants were poor, and he continued to attract negative attention.
In October 2021, his London restaurant made headlines when a Reddit user shared an image of their astonishing £37,023.10 bill. There were also allegations that negative reviews mysteriously disappeared, notes Time Out London. His Boston restaurant was closed for several days after it opened in September 2021 because it violated COVID-19 safety protocols.