Football: 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup and Human Rights
By Prof Dr Ian Blackshaw
According to a new 36-page Report, entitled 'Humanity Must Win: Defending rights, tackling repression at the 2026 FIFA World Cup', from Amnesty, the Human Rights Campaign Group, the 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup risks becoming "a stage for repression and a platform for authoritarian practices" and has detailed "significant risks" to fans, players, journalists, workers and local communities in the tournament's three co-hosts, the United States, Mexico and Canada.
The US is due to host 78 matches across 11 cities, with co-hosts, Canada and Mexico, hosting 13 matches each. The Report warns that "severe restrictions on freedom of expression and peaceful protest" threaten the "safe, welcoming and inclusive" tournament that has been promised by FIFA. Steve Cockburn, the head of economic and social justice at Amnesty, remarked that:
"The US government has deported more than 500,000 people from the USA in 2025, more than six times as many people than will watch the World Cup final in the MetLife Stadium.”
And added that:
"It's a deeply troubling time in the US, which will certainly extend to fans who want to take part in World Cup celebrations."
Amnesty claims that the "starkest threat" to visitors to the World Cup may be "the machine of abusive, discriminatory and deadly immigration enforcement and mass detention in the USA” and that "Fans face intrusive surveillance, with proposals to force visitors to make their social media accounts available for vetting, and screening for ‘anti-Americanism’”.
Amnesty has, therefore, called upon the governments of the host countries to "meet their obligations under international human rights law, while Fifa, national FAs and sponsors all have clear responsibilities to respect human rights".
The White House World Cup Task Force has stated that the tournament will be "the largest, safest, and most welcoming sporting event in history" and that fans "can look forward to a smooth, secure, and truly unforgettable tournament".
Prof Dr Ian Blackshaw may be contacted by e-mail at ‘
