Amnesty warns of ‘serious risks’ to World Cup fans in the USA | OneFootball

Amnesty International warned of the “serious risks” to communities and fans during the 2026 World Cup, especially in the United States, where it sees “a human rights crisis.”

“Under President Donald Trump’s administration, the United States, where three quarters of the World Cup matches will be played, is the scene of a human rights crisis,” Amnesty stressed in a statement accompanying its report “Humanity Must Prevail,” published on Monday.

This “crisis” is “marked by discriminatory immigration policies, mass detentions, and arbitrary arrests by masked and armed agents of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Customs and Border Protection, and other agencies,” Amnesty says.

“Despite the alarming number of arrests and expulsions, neither FIFA nor the (U.S.) authorities have given any assurance to fans and local communities that they will be protected from racial and ethnic discrimination, indiscriminate police raids, and illegal arrests and expulsions,” said Steve Cockburn, director of Amnesty International’s Economic and Social Justice program.

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The 2026 World Cup, which will be held from June 11 to July 19 in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, will have a total of 104 matches, 78 of which will be played in the United States.

Countries such as Iran — whose participation is in doubt due to the ongoing conflict —, Senegal, and Ivory Coast may have their fans barred from attending because of the travel restrictions imposed by the Trump administration, which has made immigration policy a hallmark of his second term in the White House.

Other football fans are exposed to the “intrusive surveillance” of their social media accounts in a “search for anti-American content,” the NGO estimates.

In addition, “members of LGBTQI+ groups in the United Kingdom and Europe said it was dangerous for them to make their presence visible during the tournament,” says the human rights organization, which also expressed concern about restrictions on the right to protest and freedom of expression in Mexico and Canada.

“With just ten weeks to go until the start of the World Cup, FIFA’s commitment to organizing a tournament in which everyone feels ‘safe, included, and free to exercise their rights’ requires urgent action to prevent this wonderful competition from ending badly,” Amnesty International said.

*With AFP content

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.