Teams searched on the tarmac, referee expelled despite a valid visa, supporters prevented from attending matches… Behind the football festival, Donald Trump imposes a security show of force.
À a few hours before the start of the first match of the 2026 World Cup, Fifa’s promise that “football unites the world” hardly seems to be kept. The World Cup, which begins this Thursday, June 11 at the Azteca stadium in Mexico, is above all one of excess. Organized in three countries (Canada, United States and Mexico) and distributed between 16 host cities, the competition is the largest sporting event in the history of football… and the most lucrative: according to estimates, Fifa’s revenues could amount to 11 billion dollars. But behind this excess looms the specter of Donald Trump’s authoritarian politics.
Présence de l’ICE
The presence of ICE – the American migration police – in the security system of this global event particularly worries supporters and journalists. In February, Todd Lyons told Congress that ICE would be ” a key part of the overall security apparatus for the World Cup HAS”. Armed arm of Trump’s migration policy and responsible for the expulsion of 500,000 people from the United States in 2025, it is strongly criticized for its brutal methods and little respect for human rights. It is estimated that between January 2025 and April 2026, 43 people died during arrests or in detention centers.
