Intelligence briefings in the United States have warned of potential attacks by extremists and criminals targeting the FIFA World Cup 2026, as delays in distributing hundreds of millions of dollars in approved security funds have caused U.S. preparations to fall behind schedule. The warnings come amid heightened tensions and logistical challenges for the global sporting event.
The previously unreported briefings from U.S. federal and state officials, along with FIFA, the international federation overseeing the tournament, outlined risks including extremist attacks, assaults on transportation infrastructure, and civil unrest linked to President Donald Trump's immigration crackdown. The World Cup, one of the planet's largest sporting events, is set for June and July across the U.S., Canada, and Mexico, but security concerns are mounting due to these threats.
Officials involved in U.S. preparations have increasingly sounded alarms in recent weeks over a stalled $625 million in federal security grants for the event, which were part of a Republican-backed spending bill passed in July 2025. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), tasked with distributing the funds, stated in November that it expected to allocate the money by January 30, but only announced the grant awards this past Wednesday following inquiries by Reuters, claiming the funds would "bolster security preparations."
The delayed funding and threat warnings have compounded an already complex planning process, according to multiple officials involved. Mike Sena, president of the National Fusion Center Association, noted that the grant distribution process typically takes months, and efforts to procure technology and equipment can take even longer. He stated, "It will be extremely tight," highlighting the time pressure as the tournament approaches.
A December 2025 intelligence report from New Jersey, which will host matches including the final, flagged recent domestic attacks, disrupted terror plots, and a proliferation of extremist propaganda. Another report from September 2025 described an online post allegedly encouraging attacks on railroad infrastructure during the World Cup, citing "plenty of opportunities for us to knock it off the tracks" and emphasizing matches on the U.S. and Canadian West Coasts.
Democrats have blamed outgoing U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem for delaying the release of the funds. Under Noem's leadership, the DHS also withheld hundreds of millions of dollars in homeland security funds last year from a dozen Democratic-led states and Washington, D.C., while pressuring them to increase immigration enforcement. In response, White House spokesman Davis Ingle purportedly faulted Democrats for the delay, citing disagreements over immigration enforcement tactics.
Trump's immigration crackdown has cast a pall over the event and raised concerns about the presence of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers. Since Trump took office in January 2025, masked immigration agents have rounded up suspected immigration offenders in U.S. cities and detained some tourists at airports. This has coincided with a Trump-era drop in overall international visitors, according to U.S. Commerce Department data.
In a FIFA weekly intelligence briefing dated January 28, 2026, analysts warned that anti-ICE activism in U.S. cities in response to immigration enforcement could lower barriers "to hostile actions by lone actors or extremist elements." Trump has also imposed full or partial travel bans on nationals from over three dozen countries, including Iran, which is in talks with FIFA to move its matches to Mexico due to its current conflict with the United States.
Several World Cup and state officials have expressed particular concern over "FIFA Fan Festival" events, which allow large crowds to gather and watch matches on open-air screens. A planned Fan Festival in Liberty State Park, Jersey City, for the duration of the tournament was unexpectedly canceled last month and replaced with smaller gatherings. New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill claimed that many smaller events would allow more people to enjoy the experience, while a person familiar with the planning said security concerns also factored into the decision.
U.S. Representative Nellie Pou, a Democrat representing a New Jersey district that includes MetLife Stadium, a tournament venue, stated that each of the World Cup's 104 matches would be equivalent to a Super Bowl in scale. She emphasized, "Local government, local law enforcement, will certainly have their hands full. They need every single dollar that they are eligible to receive, and they need it now," underscoring the urgent need for resources amid the security challenges.
Source: www.aljazeera.com