2026 World Cup under fire: visa chaos, human rights concerns and sky-high prices overshadow tournament

When the hosting of Canada, Mexico and the United States was confirmed in 2018, the 2026 World Cup seemed the 'safe choice': proven tournament country, operational certainty and record turnover as promise. The reality is completely different months before kick-off. The tournament is more politicized than ever, with problems that have little precedent in the 92-year World Cup history.

The most serious issue: a host country going to war with a participant in the run-up to the tournament. Following reports that Iranian leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in a US attack, the conflict escalated; A rocket hit a primary school in Minab claimed 168 lives, including 110 children, according to local sources. The Iranian team arrived in Mexico with commemorative pins and was reportedly denied a base in the U.S. and visas for many staff members. Regardless of everyone's political views: never before has a World Cup balanced on such a geopolitical tightrope.

Even without this war, there were already major concerns. Human rights organizations such as Amnesty International speak of a potential 'human rights crisis' surrounding the tournament in the US, especially due to the 'chilling threat' of the immigration service ICE. Warnings are circulating about discriminatory policies, mass detentions and arbitrary arrests. According to Amnesty, cities such as Dallas, Houston and Miami entered into problematic partnerships with ICE; meanwhile, Congress is debating additional funding for deportations. Amnesty also refers to more than 500,000 deportations in 2025 and states that there are no firm guarantees against ethnic profiling or unlawful arrests.

Border access and visa issues are in a head-on collision with FIFA's own principle of free access for teams, officials and fans. Striking: shortly before the start, the renowned Somali referee Omar Artan was refused entry, the Iraqi striker Aymen Hussein was interrogated for a long time in Chicago and the selections of Senegal and Uzbekistan were rigorously searched. This is all the more so because FIFA deprived Indonesia of the Under-20 World Cup in 2023 due to its refusal to admit a country - while the world football association now emphasizes that it is 'not involved' in immigration processes of host countries.

The criticism also focuses on the exceptionally close relationship between FIFA president Gianni Infantino and Donald Trump. Infantino's presence at Trump's political events and the presentation of a 'FIFA peace prize' to the former president are seen as symbols of entanglement. Sources previously spoke of a 'MAGA World Cup', in which the tournament could become politically colored and provide room for the suppression of protests. Human rights clubs fear that the World Cup will be misused as a stage for harsh rhetoric and far-reaching security measures.

Physical safety is also under discussion. In Kansas City, near England's base camp, nine people were reportedly injured in a shooting - a painful reminder of the gun problem in the US. In co-host country Mexico, the narco-violence debate flared after unrest in Guadalajara, where the Jalisco cartel blocked roads and set cars on fire after the death of leader 'El Mencho' in a security operation. Mexico mobilized 100,000 additional security forces; Amnesty warnsat the same time for the risk of repression of peaceful demonstrations, including around the opening match in the Azteca Stadium.

The climate and heat paragraph completes the picture. Sustainability platform Greenly estimates the World Cup's emissions at 7.8 million tons of CO2 – more than twice as much as Qatar 2022, mainly due to the scale of the tournament with 48 teams and enormous travel distances. World Weather Attribution expects that approximately a quarter of the matches will be played in conditions of 26 degrees 'Wet Bulb Globe Temperature' or higher, a limit that physiologists use to indicate heat stress. FairSquare calls FIFA's mitigation inadequate, partly due to the lack of public investigation and cooperation with major polluters.

This World Cup also threatens to become unaffordable for supporters. Ticket prices are often more than three times higher than recent editions and travel within North America is expensive. Treasures range from $10,000 to $35,000 for fans who want to follow their team through the finals. It goes against FIFA's promise of inclusivity. Supporters' association Football Supporters Europe states that this is the first major sporting event in years that actually excludes fans with disabilities: no accessible tickets in the cheapest category, no free companion places and excessive parking costs. According to FSE, a wheelchair user can spend up to $7,000 to follow a team; director Ronan Evain calls it 'a tax on a disability'.

All in all, the picture emerges of a World Cup that is in danger of becoming detached from the core: football for everyone due to politics, policy and price tags. While 2026 was supposed to be a 'low risk' tournament with record turnover, the run-up is dominated by visa controls, security tensions, human rights concerns, climate risks and sky-high costs. It is now up to FIFA and the host countries to credibly demonstrate in the remaining time that sporting values, accessibility and safety take precedence over politics and commerce.