This article by Alberto Aceves originally appeared in the January 13, 2026 edition of La Jornada, Mexico’s premier left wing daily newspaper.
The drums of protest and calls to boycott the 2026 FIFA World Cup are beating louder in the United States. Thousands of fans are expressing concern about the tournament’s security, outrage over the armed attack in Venezuela, and the controversial human rights policies of the Donald Trump administration. According to European media, messages promoting ticket cancellations on resale forums, travel agencies, and hotel booking sites have not only prompted extraordinary meetings between officials and representatives of member associations, but have also generated discussions about potential strategies to address the shifting perceptions surrounding the tournament.
Since late last year, an informal group of international supporters created the website BoycottUSA2026.org in response to the violation of civil liberties of visitors from Australia, Mexico, the United Kingdom, and other European countries, who have been deported in various cities by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). “The U.S. government has revoked thousands of visas and denied entry to legal residents,” stated members of the group from New York, the host city of the World Cup final, which is being co-hosted by the U.S., Mexico, and Canada. “Participants must demand that FIFA prioritize the safety and rights of fans and players.”
Social media not only represents a space for grievances for the #BoycottFIFAWorldCup movement, but also a significant mobilization tool. The campaign is coordinated by users who utilize threads on X (formerly Twitter) and TikTok videos to expose the contradiction between sporting values and a long history of violence and abuse ordered by President Donald Trump. “I canceled my World Cup tickets,” announced Lebanese diplomat Mohamad Safa, executive director of PVA Patriotic Vision—a non-governmental organization accredited as a consultant to the United Nations—on Thursday, fearing that ICE agents would consider him a dangerous individual due to his background.
Fan trips from around the world are being cancelled
“ICE can decide I’m a gang member and lock me up in prison for a year without charges, without a hearing, without a trial, without the right to consult a lawyer or make any phone calls. It’s not safe to visit the United States,” Safa wrote, referring to the tightening of the U.S. government’s immigration policies. “Threatening to revoke my U.S. visa in response to the World Cup boycott campaign won’t change anything. Fans around the world are canceling their trips. FIFA expelled Russia from international football. Now it must do the same with Israel; the law applies equally to everyone.”
Although the governing body of soccer maintains that it cannot intervene in geopolitical issues due to a principle of neutrality—anti-immigrant raids, intervention in Venezuela, and Israel’s genocide in the Gaza Strip, for example—in 2022 it acted swiftly to sanction Russia for its military intervention in Ukraine. The creators of the website BoycottUSA2026.org, based in New York—the host city of the tournament final on July 19—promote building a solidarity network among fans, supporters, journalists, and other organizations to “support the immigrant communities where we live” and provide resources on “how to act safely around law enforcement.”
“We must not allow these acts to become normalized.”
2016 US Vice Presidential candidate Ajamu Baraka
The voices of the collective and diplomat Mohamad Safa have also been linked to those of professors, content creators, and political activists, such as Ajamu Baraka, the 2016 US vice-presidential candidate, who has pointed out the potential human rights violations at the World Cup, fueled by FIFA’s convenient ties to Donald Trump. “How can the United States be rewarded with hosting the World Cup, with its hands stained with Palestinian blood and an illegal attack on Venezuela? We must not allow these acts to become normalized. Postpone the matches, boycott the United States,” he wrote on his social media accounts on January 3.
On the nonprofit technology platform Action Network, dedicated to providing tools for progressive groups to mobilize their supporters, raise funds, and manage political campaigns, more than 3,240 people have launched an initiative urging FIFA and the International Olympic Committee to ban the United States and Israel from hosting or participating in international sporting events. “The world is witnessing massive violations of human rights and the U.S. Constitution as masked agents in unmarked vehicles raid workplaces, homes, and public squares to arrest people and deny them legal representation,” states the petition on actionnetwork.org.
World Cup Boycott Calls Grow in Response to Trump
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“How can the United States be rewarded with hosting the World Cup, with its hands stained with Palestinian blood and an illegal attack on Venezuela?”
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