Q REPORTS — Although the legendary Argentine player Diego Maradona once insisted, when speaking of his own mistakes, that “the ball is not stained,” today it is clear that the world is playing its World Cup in the shadow of war, fear, and anger that exists off the field.
This week, the biggest celebration of the world’s most popular sport began in 16 stadiums across Mexico, the United States, and Canada, this time, with 48 national teams hoping to make their mark on the field and bring some joy to the countries they represent.
In a world always in turmoil, it is rare to say that the World Cup has remained untouched by conflicts between nations and the international politics that are played out daily for purposes far less noble than those that sustain a sport.
It is impossible to forget, then, that while hosting a World Cup, the United States is fueling an armed conflict in Iran, a country that nearly withdrew from the competition (despite being among the top-ranked teams) after bombings on its territory and the deaths of several government leaders.
Before even starting to follow the game’s scores, the world’s attention is focused on the fluctuating prices of oil, directly affected by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, where US military power seems to have reached another impasse.
Under these circumstances, including President Donald Trump’s threat to destroy “an entire civilization,” the Iranian team agreed to remain in the World Cup despite the far from hospitable treatment they received from the US host.
Although the United States, as host of a World Cup, must commit to FIFA to provide the necessary visa assistance to delegations, the entry permits for the Iranian team were only ready last Friday, a week before the tournament began.
Furthermore, the permission to enter the United States comes with the restriction that the Iranian players and the entire delegation must enter and leave the country on the same day as their scheduled match.
Therefore, the Iranian national team will have to travel to Los Angeles to play against New Zealand on June 16 and against Belgium on June 21, while their group stage will conclude in Seattle on June 28 against Egypt.
Given this unprecedented situation in World Cup history, the Iranians will have to travel to and from Tijuana, Mexico, where FIFA authorized them to relocate their training camp after Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum agreed to host them in her country.
The US State Department told the BBC that it had granted the necessary visas for Iran to participate in the tournament, but added that it would not allow the team to “abuse this system to smuggle terrorists into the US under false pretenses,” according to the British media outlet.
“(Visitors) are at risk of encountering disturbing human rights abuses, particularly those stemming from deadly and abusive US immigration policies,” Amnesty International.
As if the restrictions on the Iranian national team weren’t enough, its fans will also suffer the consequences of Trump’s foreign policy. The Iranian Football Federation denounced FIFA for canceling the 8% quota of tickets to its team’s games, earmarked for Iranian fans, without any explanation as of this writing.
Despite all these problems, which must undoubtedly be a major headache for FIFA, the organization’s president, Gianni Infantino, presented President Trump with the first-ever FIFA Peace Prize in December 2025 for his “extraordinary actions to promote peace.”
No Visa
But the Iranian team wasn’t the only one to suffer due to immigration issues. The Democratic Republic of Congo’s national team also had to postpone its arrival at the World Cup venue and complete a 21-day quarantine in Belgium before traveling to the United States and Canada, due to an Ebola outbreak in that African country.
However, the restrictions also affected many Congolese fans who dreamed of witnessing their national team’s first World Cup appearance. Despite having purchased tickets, they were denied visas, according to several international media outlets.
An analysis by the BBC World Service determined that a quarter of the countries participating in this World Cup in North America face travel bans or significant obstacles to obtaining entry permits.
Countries such as Haiti, Iran, Senegal, and the Ivory Coast have visa bans and restrictions imposed by the Trump administration, making it a real ordeal for citizens of these countries to travel to this World Cup.
But perhaps the most striking case is that of Somali referee Omar Abdulkadir Artan, who, despite traveling with a valid visa and a diplomatic passport, was rejected by US authorities at Miami International Airport and deported to Turkey.
Abdulkadir Artan was set to become his country’s first representative at a FIFA World Cup, but, according to international media, US immigration authorities cited security screening concerns. FIFA responded that it has no control over the immigration decisions of host countries.
Low Expectations and High Prices
Immigration restrictions and Trump’s policies have not gone unnoticed by the global tourism industry, and just days before the World Cup began, it was revealed that the number of visitors to the United States had fallen significantly.
According to data from the US National Travel and Tourism Office released on May 26, the number of visitors to the US fell by 5.5% in 2025 compared to the previous year.
This means that 4 million fewer people visited the US, and total tourist spending dropped by UA$8 billion. The World Cup has not escaped this reality.
The American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA) published a report in which 80% of hoteliers stated that World Cup bookings were below initial projections, and 60% of them cited both immigration restrictions and geopolitical conflicts as the cause of this decline.
Cities like Kansas City are reporting up to 90% fewer bookings than expected, while in San Francisco, Seattle, Philadelphia, and Boston, bookings have fallen 70% short of expectations.
Another factor criticized at this World Cup is the high price of tickets to matches, which, according to The Economist, start at an average of US$200 for the group stage, double the price for Qatar 2022.
From then on, prices climb to over US$500, and on some resale sites, tickets for the World Cup final were offered for over US$2 million.
This prompted the attorneys general of New York and New Jersey to announce in late May, according to Agence France-Presse (AFP), the opening of an investigation into FIFA’s ticketing practices for the World Cup.
The attorneys general of both states are requesting information from FIFA regarding ticket sales, particularly for the eight matches scheduled at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, near New York, including the final on July 19.
Attorneys general in California and Texas have also announced investigations into this matter.
Fears over ICE
Another source of fear for those planning to visit the U.S. during this World Cup has been the aggressive deportation policy and the interventions in various states by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, known as ICE.
Amnesty International issued a report earlier this year warning that fans attending this World Cup “risk encountering disturbing human rights abuses, particularly those stemming from deadly and abusive U.S. immigration policies.”
Amnesty International also noted that “severe restrictions on freedom of expression and peaceful protest threaten the ‘safe, welcoming, and inclusive’ tournament promised by FIFA.”
“Under President Trump, the United States—where three-quarters of the World Cup matches are being played—is facing a human rights emergency characterized by discriminatory immigration policies and arbitrary mass detentions carried out by masked and armed agents of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Customs and Border Protection (CBP), and other agencies,” the organization said in a statement.
“The US government has deported more than 500,000 people from the United States by 2025. This figure is more than six times the number of people who will attend the World Cup final at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey,” said Steve Cockburn, Amnesty International’s Director of Economic and Social Justice.
Despite assurances from ICE Director Tom Homan that operations would focus on World Cup security rather than raids, media outlets targeting the Latino community in the United States, such as Univision, report that fear persists among migrants in locations like Los Angeles and Florida.