I wouldn't risk it, an immigration attorney warns undocumented fans
As the 2026 World Cup prepares to bring the world together at MetLife Stadium, a quieter reckoning is unfolding in the communities that surround it. The announcement that ICE will play a 'key role' in tournament security has transformed what should be a moment of global celebration into a source of dread for undocumented immigrants, who must now weigh the joy of the beautiful game against the risk of deportation. Governments offer assurances, advocates demand guarantees, and in the space between those two things, millions of people are left to calculate their own safety. It is an old tension made newly visible: the promise of belonging, and the machinery that withholds it.
- ICE's confirmed 'key role' in World Cup security at MetLife Stadium has sent shockwaves through immigrant communities across New York and New Jersey, turning anticipation into anxiety.
- Government officials speak in contradictions — DHS denies mass raids while refusing to rule out arrests, and local officials claim ICE won't coordinate security at all, leaving no binding protections in place.
- Immigration attorneys are already advising undocumented clients to skip the matches entirely, warning that the political climate has fundamentally shifted the risk calculus around public gatherings.
- Human rights organizations, labor unions, and immigrant advocacy groups are pressing FIFA and city officials to secure a formal 'migration truce' — a guarantee of safe passage modeled on the ancient Olympic tradition.
- With 1.2 million visitors expected across eight matches, the question of who feels safe enough to attend may shape the World Cup's legacy in the region as powerfully as anything that happens on the field.
The 2026 World Cup arrives at MetLife Stadium this summer with eight matches, 1.2 million expected visitors, and a shadow that has little to do with soccer. For many in the region's immigrant communities, the tournament has become a source of fear rather than celebration — because federal immigration agents will be present, and no one can say exactly what that means.
The anxiety sharpened after ICE's interim director told Congress the agency would have a 'key role' in World Cup security. DHS confirmed federal immigration authorities would work alongside other law enforcement, but left critical questions unanswered: Would agents make arrests inside the stadium? Outside it? Would they target only serious criminals, or cast a wider net? A DHS spokesperson acknowledged that undocumented people 'could become targets,' while the secretary of Homeland Security denied plans for mass raids but declined to rule out arrests altogether.
The gap between official reassurance and lived reality has proven difficult to bridge. The host committee insisted agents would focus on counterterrorism and counterfeit goods, not immigration enforcement. The mayor's office went further, claiming ICE wouldn't coordinate security at all. But none of these statements carry legal weight or offer binding protection.
Immigration attorney Cory Forman has advised undocumented clients to reconsider attending entirely, noting that the political landscape has shifted in ways that make public gatherings riskier than before. Human Rights Watch, the New York Immigration Coalition, and the AFL-CIO have all called on FIFA and city officials to demand a formal guarantee — a 'migration truce' keeping immigration enforcement away from stadiums and fan zones for the duration of the tournament, echoing the ancient Olympic tradition of safe passage.
The World Cup was built to unite nations through sport. In New York and New Jersey, it has instead illuminated a fault line — between a global invitation to celebrate and a domestic climate in which millions of people must calculate whether showing up is worth the risk.
The World Cup is coming to the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey this summer—eight matches spread across June and July 2026, drawing an expected 1.2 million visitors to what will be one of the planet's largest sporting events. But for many in the region's immigrant communities, the tournament has become a source of deep anxiety, not celebration. Federal immigration agents will be present during the games, and no one can quite say what that means.
The concern crystallized after Todd Lyons, the interim director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, told a House panel that ICE would play a "key role" in the World Cup's security apparatus. The Department of Homeland Security confirmed the arrangement: federal immigration authorities would work alongside local and federal law enforcement to "secure" the tournament. But the specifics remained murky. Would agents conduct arrests inside the stadium? Outside it? Would they focus only on people wanted for serious crimes, or would they cast a wider net?
Historically, ICE has participated in major sporting events—the Super Bowl, the Olympics—primarily to combat terrorism, human trafficking, and counterfeit merchandise. But immigrant advocates worry the current political moment has changed the calculus. A DHS spokesperson acknowledged that people who entered the country illegally "could become targets" of immigration operations, though he stopped short of confirming whether arrests would happen at or near the stadium. Markwayne Mullin, the secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, told CBS News that the agency had no plans for mass raids but also refused to rule out arrests entirely. ICE typically pursues people wanted for serious crimes, drug trafficking, or international warrants, he said. "We always enforce immigration laws," Mullin stated. "But we're not there exclusively for that."
The ambiguity has created a chasm between official reassurances and community fear. Natalie Hamilton, representing the New York and New Jersey host committee, insisted to reporters that federal agents would focus only on general security operations—counterterrorism, counterfeit goods—not immigration enforcement. The mayor's office went further: a spokesman said ICE would not coordinate security operations at all during the World Cup. Yet these statements offered no binding guarantees, no legal protections, no clarity about what would actually happen on the ground.
Cory Forman, an immigration attorney based in New York, advised undocumented immigrants to reconsider attending altogether. In previous administrations, he explained, there was less concern about domestic air travel for people without legal status. The landscape has shifted. "I wouldn't risk it," he said. Those who do travel should carry documentation proving their legal status, he added—a precaution that underscores the fundamental vulnerability at stake.
Human rights organizations have begun mobilizing. Human Rights Watch has called for guarantees that no immigration arrests will occur in stadiums, fan zones, or tournament-related areas. The New York Immigration Coalition, led by Murad Awawdeh, has asked FIFA and city officials to formally request that the federal government keep immigration agents away from the matches. The AFL-CIO labor federation has made a similar plea, citing concerns about racial profiling, arrests without warrants, and constitutional violations. Some groups have invoked the ancient Olympic Truce—a historical practice allowing safe passage for athletes and spectators—as a model for what FIFA might demand: a temporary migration truce during the tournament.
The debate has exposed a fundamental tension: a global sporting event meant to unite nations and celebrate the game, now shadowed by the threat of deportation. Workers at the MetLife Stadium have not yet raised formal concerns, according to union officials. But as the tournament approaches, the question of who feels safe attending—and who stays home out of fear—promises to define the World Cup's legacy in New York and New Jersey as much as any goal scored on the pitch.
Notable Quotes
We always enforce immigration laws. But we're not there exclusively for that.— Markwayne Mullin, DHS Secretary, to CBS News
ICE will not coordinate security operations during the World Cup.— Spokesman for New York Mayor's office
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
Why would ICE need to be at a soccer match at all? What's the actual security threat?
That's the official question, isn't it. ICE says they're there for counterterrorism, human trafficking, counterfeit merchandise—the same role they play at the Super Bowl or Olympics. But the problem is that immigration enforcement and security have become entangled in ways that make people nervous.
So they're saying they won't do immigration raids, but they're not ruling them out either?
Exactly. The DHS secretary said there won't be "mass raids," but he also said they "always enforce immigration laws." It's a careful non-answer. And the host committee says ICE won't coordinate security, but ICE will still be there. The gap between those statements is where the fear lives.
Who's most at risk here?
Undocumented immigrants, obviously. But also anyone who looks like they might be undocumented—which in practice often means Latino immigrants, regardless of status. An immigration attorney is telling people not to go. That's the real impact: a million-person event, and a whole segment of the community is being told to stay away.
Has FIFA said anything about this?
Not directly. But human rights groups are asking FIFA to impose a migration truce—basically a temporary agreement that immigration enforcement won't happen during the tournament. It's modeled on the ancient Olympic Truce. FIFA hasn't committed to it.
What happens if someone gets arrested at the stadium?
That's the nightmare scenario no one wants to discuss. It would be a deportation. A family separated. A worker losing their job. And it would happen at an event that's supposed to be about joy and sport.
So this is really about trust, or the lack of it?
Completely. If the government had a track record of restraint, or if there were legal guarantees in place, people might feel differently. But there aren't. There's just a promise that probably won't hold.