Human rights experts warn against possible threats ahead of FIFA World Cup

Human rights experts are warning against possible threats ahead of next year’s FIFA World Cup, highlighting the need to protect immigrant communities, foreign visitors and the journalists covering the games.

There will be 104 games instead of 64 in the World Cup running from June 11 through July 19 at 16 venues throughout North America. Seventy-eight games will be at 11 NFL stadiums, including all from the quarterfinals on, and 13 each in Mexico and Canada. The final is at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, where there will be a halftime show for the first time.

With the games less than a year away, though, FIFA’s commitment to upholding human rights is still under scrutiny.

And with U.S. President Donald Trump ramping up immigration enforcement across the country, there is fear that federal law enforcement officers will arrest workers and even travelers during the games.

“Without action today, FIFA risks becoming a stage for authoritarianism,” said Jamil Dakwar, Director of the American Civil Liberties Union's Human Rights Program.

Dakwar was joined in Washington on Wednesday by officials from the NAACP, Amnesty International, Reporters Without Borders, and the Center for Community Health Innovation at Georgetown Law.

The group said they sent a letter to FIFA President Gianni Infantino addressing their concerns, but that FIFA had not yet responded.

“The longer FIFA stays silent, or doesn't do enough, the greater the risk that their brand and event will become part of a public relations tool to normalize an increasingly authoritarian U.S. government,” Dakwar added.

Along with immigration, press freedom is also a concern.

“People all around the world who are not able to come are going to rely on journalists to tell a complete and contextualized story of this tournament, before, during and after the games are being played,” said Clayton Weimers, Executive Director of Reporters Without Borders USA.

“We have to ask ourselves, what kind of story are they going to hear or read or watch? We have to ensure that the story is freely told, that journalists have access, that journalists are safe, and that journalists are left alone to do their jobs,” he added.

Human rights concerns in North America look different from those in other countries where FIFA has come under fire, which had few protections for workers and massive stadium and transportation construction projects. Migrant workers labored in Qatar’s scorching heat for more than a decade before the 2022 World Cup there, and human rights advocates worry migrant workers’ lives are again at risk in Saudi Arabia, which will host the games in 2034.

FIFA’s suggestions for the 2026 plans include guidelines on nondiscrimination, security, preventing trafficking, protecting unhoused people and workers’ rights, including for migrant workers.

Infantino has close ties to Trump, and a FIFA spokesperson said the organization is working with a White House task force to “bring millions of people from different nations and communities” together in the U.S.