United States President Donald Trump’s immigration and border policies are raising increasing concerns for the 2026 World Cup and 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, despite the enthusiasm Trump has expressed for the two sporting extravaganzas.
A recent ban on citizens from 12 countries, preventing them from travelling to the US has shone a spotlight on how the world-famous sporting events could be affected by the unpredictability of America’s travel rules.
.@POTUS has signed a new directive restricting the entry of foreign nationals from specific countries to protect the United States from foreign terrorists and other national security and public safety threats. — @StateDeputySpox pic.twitter.com/23Z56j4Zdf
— Department of State (@StateDept) June 5, 2025
Accused of “deficient” security and screening processes, the nations impacted in the latest move are Afghanistan, Chad, the Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Myanmar, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen. In addition, citizens from Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela face stricter vetting.
This could mean that footballers from Iran, which has already qualified for the World Cup, as well as potential qualifiers from Cuba, Haiti and Sudan could be prevented from going to play in the competition if rules excepting “any athlete or member of an athletic team, including coaches, persons performing a necessary support role, and immediate relatives, travelling for the World Cup, Olympics, or other major sporting events as determined by the secretary of state” are not respected.
Planning to apply for a U.S. visa? U.S. national security is our top priority. Every traveler undergoes extensive security screening including checks against law enforcement and counterterrorism databases. Your visa won’t be issued until all security concerns are fully resolved.… pic.twitter.com/ypaHFSbLX3
— U.S. Embassy Nepal (@USEmbassyNepal) June 4, 2025
But fans, who have been able to access previous host countries using their event tickets as a visa, do not necessarily benefit from any US exceptions, and reports have already emerged of Iranian followers of the beautiful game experiencing trouble when applying for travel visas.
Trump himself has expressed excitement about the two sporting occasions and reportedly has a close relationship with FIFA President Gianni Infantino, who some have accused of cosying up to Trump since 2018. Infantino has defended the closeness, saying FIFA operations and revenues (expected to be around $13 billion between 2023-26) depend on it.
It’s a model that Olympic organisers will be observing keenly. LA28 chairman and president Casey Wasserman has already had at least two meetings with Trump and recently praised the US government after the travel bans were made public. “It was very clear in the directive that the Olympics require special consideration and I actually want to thank the federal government for recognizing that,” he said, adding: “It’s very clear that the federal government understands that that’s an environment that they will be accommodating and provide for.” Wasserman expressed “great confidence” that the special treatment would continue.
