Washington (United States) (AFP) – Human rights groups warned Wednesday ahead of the draw for next year’s football World Cup that President Donald Trump’s hardline immigration policies could overshadow the tournament. Organizations including Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) cautioned against raids outside US arenas. They urged the sport’s governing body, FIFA, to deliver on its promises to safeguard workers, fans, and journalists.
“Families, fans, players, and other members of the football community have the right to enjoy the game without the fear of being detained and separated from their loved ones,” Daniel Norona, Amnesty International USA’s Americas advocacy director, told a joint news conference. The World Cup will be co-hosted by the United States, Mexico, and Canada in June and July 2026. The draw for the 48-nation tournament will be held Friday in Washington.
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A Human Rights Watch report Wednesday said that US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrested more than 92,000 people between January and October near cities where World Cup games will be played. It noted that an asylum seeker in the United States was detained before the Club World Cup final in July. As part of his mass-deportation drive, Trump has deployed National Guard troops to some cities that will host World Cup matches, such as Chicago and Los Angeles.
“We need FIFA and host cities and other entities to make clear whether or not ICE, the National Guard, and other federal law enforcement will be at the stadiums,” said Jennifer Li, a professor at Washington’s Georgetown University Law Center. “This isn’t just kind of hypothetical.” Human Rights Watch’s Minky Worden expressed particular concern over the administration’s revocation of temporary legal protections for migrants from Haiti, a country that earned its first World Cup berth in more than 50 years.
“These policies put communities at risk and threaten to undermine the integrity of the tournament itself,” said Jamil Dakwar, director of the ACLU’s human rights program. “Without action today, FIFA risks becoming a stage for authoritarianism.”
The groups also warned about access for journalists, including overseas reporters seeking entry into the United States, and protections for workers and fans from abuse and discrimination. They noted that homophobic chants were heard at a July Club World Cup match in Atlanta. Complicating their efforts is Trump’s seemingly close relationship with FIFA president Gianni Infantino, who has made repeated White House visits and is slated to unveil an inaugural FIFA Peace Prize at Friday’s draw that onlookers have speculated could go to Trump.
“The relationship is too close for comfort,” said the NAACP’s Jamal Watkins. “When Infantino aligns with Donald Trump, then you literally are sending a signal not only to the United States, but to the world, that all of the practices and policies that are coming out of this administration are OK.”
In a letter sent to FIFA last month, Human Rights Watch petitioned the governing body for the criteria used to determine a winner, a list of nominees and judges, and whether human rights considerations would inform the decision. Worden said they have not received an answer. “Gianni Infantino has said that this FIFA Peace Prize represents five billion fans of football around the world,” she said. “How were the five billion fans of football consulted?”
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