Enlarge image
World Cup celebration: the Turkish restauranteur Salt Bae kisses the trophy
Photo: Robert Michael / dpa
The world football association Fifa wants to investigate incidents at the closing ceremony of the World Cup in Qatar after the Argentine team won the title.
The association is taking “appropriate internal measures” because people in the Lusail Stadium had gained unauthorized access to the field, FIFA said.
Restaurant owner Nusret Gökçe, known by his stage name Salt Bae, was one of the stars at Argentina's celebrations after beating France on penalties.
He took photos with Argentine players and also held the World Cup trophy, as seen in photos he posted to his own Instagram account, among others.
Fifa has described the trophy as a "priceless icon" that "can only be touched and held by a very select group of people, which includes former FIFA World Cup winners and heads of state".
The chef, who runs a restaurant in Doha, was a regular at Fifa during the World Cup with VIP access, posting photos and videos on social media.
He has been spotted repeatedly with Fifa President Gianni Infantino.
Salt Bae joined the cheering players after Argentina's penalty shoot-out win after a thrilling 3-3 draw.
He was caught holding captain Lionel Messi's arm on the pitch to get his attention.
The soccer star looks irritated in the film clip, but later posed for a photo that Salt Bae posted to Instagram.
Salt Bae rose to prominence in 2019 when he served football star Franck Ribéry a steak covered in gold leaf.
Ribéry posted a video of it on social media and received a lot of ridicule for it, about which he later got upset.
mgo/AP/dpa
